The Christensen Capers

Go girls, go!

2012-01-31T11:38:00.001-09:00

Look at this happy face!

If only you could see the mama's happy face now that her little baby has decided to start scooting around and entertaining herself for longer than 2 minutes.

This means that I should now be getting so much more done, right?

Should.

I've just been trying to keep up with her older sister who has decided it's fun to unravel full rolls of toilet paper and/or try to flush them down the toilet.

As if the garage flooding wasn't enough, we've now had a few bathroom floodings to add to the mix. :)

If you happen to drop by for a visit and need to visit the loo, don't be surprised if you see this when you go to wipe:

Besides being busy unraveling toilet paper, Kenners has been harnessing Beyonce in her dance moves:

After 2 years, it's still her favorite song.

And her reaction to it is still one of my favorite things to see.

Families are Forever

2012-01-30T13:16:00.001-09:00

One of my patients had a life-saving surgery last week. It was very risky because she was pregnant. However, the surgery was a success and an ultrasound showed the little baby boy kicking and happily sucking his thumb after the surgery. What a miracle!

A few hours later and out of nowhere, I watched as she suddenly delivered her perfect and beautiful little baby--who never took a breath. I nearly fell apart and could barely squeak my way through a phone call to her doctor to notify him what had happened.

I had to take a minute off the floor to collect myself so I could get back to work--I still had 4 other patients who I needed to care for, one who was dying of cancer.

Throughout the day, I spent random moments scolding myself for having been so grumpy about my flooded house and the stomach bug that was sweeping through my family and leaving piles of laundry that I had no washing machine for.

I bet that my patient would have loved to trade places with me!

I also spent a moment here and there wondering why I hadn't called in sick that day when I had been up sick the night before.

Most of the nurses on my floor only experience a handful of unexpected deaths during their career. This was my second in a week. Why do I have such rotten luck? One of my friends and co-workers came over to my hallway later that afternoon and said, "I heard that a patient over here lost her baby and thought, 'It had to be Holly's'". Not a good reputation to have.

By the end of day, however, I could see that the good thing that came out of it all is the bond I formed with my patient and her family. I think we have touched each other's lives profoundly and strengthened each other's testimonies that families are forever.

It is comforting to know that we can have our families for eternity.

Sometimes the Lord allows tragedy to occur in order to strengthen us and remind us of what matters most and why we are really here. Maybe that's why I've had all this "bad luck" lately inside and outside of my work life.

I guess I've needed that reminder??

I know it may be cheesy, but I love to watch these "Mormon Message" videos. After a long and draining day, sometimes I need the visual and audio reminder of simple gospel truths that get lost in the shuffle of stomach bugs, flooding, stress, and tragedy.

She's driving me sane!

2012-01-22T20:45:00.001-09:00

Last week was one of those "when it rains it pours" kind of weeks for me. Cuz you know, crappy happenings have to come in groups of 10 or something, never just one at a time. It included the following:

~ I was about to go home after work and my car would not shift into gear. So I was stuck at work until after 9pm when Garrett drove up with our screaming-tired girls to fix the car's shifting issues so I could drive home. (Thanks, honey!)

~ When we got home we had no running water. After spending a few hours on the phone, we figured out how to get the pump working so we would have running water by the morning.

~ I woke up to discover that we had no water pressure and our garage was flooded with 4 inches of water. I had to wake up Garrett to deal with it so I could speed off to work.

~ A few hours into my work day one of my patients unexpectedly died. It was traumatizing.

~ Speaking of traumatizing, pooping in the toilet has been just that for Kenners, and it has thrown a huge wrench into the "potty training is a breeze" thing. Poor little girl!

~ When I got home from work, I discovered that on top of some frozen/broken pipes, our washing machine was broken.

~ The next day Kenners got sick and puked her way through quite a few clothes which I have no washing machine for until it gets fixed on Friday.

With the incredible wind storm we've been having, I'm half expecting a tree to fall on our house or something. It sure would seem like an appropriate time.....

But then this morning Kenadie woke up at 6:45am asking to "snuggle Mommy". She laid between Garrett and I in bed, patted my back, held my hand, and gave me kisses. Um, who is this little girl!?

She let me do her hair for church today without a fuss. Wha!?

And then she asked to feed Lila her bottle while Mommy finished getting herself ready. Seriously??

She kept kissing and patting Lila's cheeks and saying, "C'mon, hold my hand Lila, you silly goose!"

There are definitely days when that girl drives me insane: the tantrums, throwing food, hitting, drawing on the walls with ink, drawing on herself with ink.

But after a week like last week and after a morning like this morning, I think she actually just drove me back to sanity!

So thank you, Kenners, for being the band-aid to my bad week.
You have reminded me that every day is "just another day in paradise".

Honestly, how would I manage without you!?

Sunshine.

2012-01-22T20:37:00.001-09:00

I've been asked before if the lack of sunlight during Alaskan winters doesn't drive me nuts.
Well, I can't speak for all Alaskans, but my winter has had plenty of sunshine with this little face around:

I've hardly noticed the shorter days.

Resolution

2012-01-17T09:06:00.000-09:00

Saw this video the other day and bawled through the whole thing.

And so I have narrowed down my eternal list of possible New Year's Resolutions for this year to this: look for opportunities to serve others. I need to be better at that. Much better.

Glad I saw this video.

Adventures in Potty-training

2012-01-13T09:18:00.000-09:00

Potty-training has been my biggest dread in parenting a toddler.

I don't know why.

I deal with my fair share of every bodily fluid imaginable in my profession, so it's not like dealing with poopy pants and pee puddles on the floor necessarily bothers me.

Maybe it's just because I've never potty-trained anymore before and have no clue what I'm doing?

You'd think I would read up on the "how to potty-train" books, but I've never found the time, and this week I happened to have 3 wonderful days off in a row. Perfect time to stay home and do this potty-training thing, right!?

I expected to report on what a disaster it turned out to be.

Poop smeared everywhere. Pee everywhere except for in the potty.

But,

it hasn't been so bad!

Only one real accident so far. I'm sure there will be a few more, and that's okay, but I'm a little amazed at how fast Kenners caught on.

And she is sooooo proud of herself!

Everytime she's gone in the potty and I clap my hands and tell her how proud I am of her, she squeals, "You're welcome, Mom!"

The other day I had to go to the bathroom and she decided to sit beside me on her potty. Once I was finished, she jumped up and down, clapping and shouting, "You did it, Mom! I so proud of you!"

That girl makes everything more fun.
Even potty training.

My epiphany at -10 degrees

2012-01-07T14:10:00.000-09:00

I was driving home the other night from work after a really long day that left my legs cramping and didn't see me clocking out until after 9pm. I had only taken one "potty break" (it is amazing how long you can hold it when you have to!) and had been yelled at over the phone by a patient's family member who let me know what a horrible job I was doing. She yelled loud enough for everyone in the vicinity to hear. It was awesome.

Before I left the hospital I called Garrett in hopes that the girls would somehow still be up so I could see them. Of course he had just put them to bed.

I began crying and spent the -10 degree drive home in a downward spiral of thoughts: I won't see my kids for 2+ days........my job is far too stressful......I wish I could be a full-time mom....my house is such a mess....I miss going to church regularly......do I have to go back to work tomorrow??.....

I got home, stopped my car, and took a few moments before I went inside. A quick thought came to me:

You may miss your girls, but you are so blessed to have them.

And then I began flipping through pictures of them on my phone.

I know not everyone is blessed to be able to have children.

It must be really, really hard and a hurt I can only imagine.

I know that so many would love to trade places with me in a heartbeat, because my life is very richly blessed and carries little trauma and heartbreak in it compared to many.

I miss my girls a lot, but I do have them.

I have a hard job, but it's paying the bills, keeping us fed, and keeping us warm.

I've heard before that if we placed all our problems in a circle with everyone else's, we'd be happy to take our own back and walk away.

After my little emotional outburst in the car (which actually felt really good!), I was happy to pick up my "problems" and go inside, eat, shower, kiss my husband, go to bed, go to work the next day, come home, eat, shower, go to bed, and wake to finally see my little girls at 7am this morning. Demands for breakfast, attention, diaper changes, treats, bottles, and playing "Astro Boy" came right away.

I love being a mom.

Christmas Highlights

2012-01-03T10:22:00.000-09:00

There was a lot more going on at Christmas time this year besides snowboarding and Kenadien getting her kitchen from Santa. It's just been hectic around here trying to balance work, Christmas preparations, and spending time with all the family who live close by and the family who have been visiting from out-of-state.

However, I wouldn't change all the chaos the past few weeks because we've had a blast. A few highlights in pictures....

Kenners, her cousin Ben, and grandpa were pretty inseparable. From dancing, to riding grandpa's four wheeler, to swimming in the pool at the hotel, they had a blast.

Brookie: you are missing from these pictures. :(

Speaking of inseparable, Sandy and Lila were pretty much connected at the hip for the past few weeks:

We spent an entire day making (and snacking on) Christmas goodies with family and friends.

We had a great Christmas Eve with our Christensen family: eating the best smoked ribs ever, reading the Christmas story from Luke 2 while the kids acted out the nativity, and then carrying out the Christensen tradition of burning candles.

Kenners was not too thrilled when the smoke detectors went off!

We have been living in a winter wonderland the past few weeks. So much beautiful snow and gorgeous sunsets to top it off. I love Alaska.

Christmas wishes fulfilled: Lila got her two front teeth in time for Christmas, and she's working on 4 more!

After opening presents and feeling utterly spoiled by our gifts, we enjoyed going to church as a family and focusing on the best gift we have received, that of our Savior's birth, life, Atonement, and Resurrection.

We ended the weeks of partying with a "small" gathering of 50+ people at my parents' house New Year's Eve with a tortilla soup party and fireworks.
And then, my siblings left to go back to Utah and Maryland. :(
As sad as it is to see them go and as much as I detest the post-Christmas-blues, I am craving some routine, organization, and sleep in my life. And I think my girls are too.
I already have a loooong list of things to accomplish this year, among them: potty training, making my first quilt with my brand new sewing machine, and finally finishing unpacking and organizing the house. I think I'll just start on that list tomorrow. :)

Teaching an old dog new tricks

2012-01-01T21:04:00.001-09:00

Garrett had two requests for Christmas this year: a new snowboard and for me to let him teach me how to snowboard.

I am not the most athletically-inclined or coordinated person and seeing as even skiing is a challenge for me, snowboarding has always scared me a little bit.

However, Garrett LOVES snowboarding and even spent a year in Utah working as a snowboard instructor.

So seeing as I've been trying all these new things lately like dying my hair and refinishing furniture I figured I would humor my husband and give him what he really wanted for Christmas.

After a few sweet craigslist finds for snow and goggles, I was ready to go (and somehow envisioned that I would be a natural). All of our extended family spent two days at Alyeska Ski Resort a few days before Christmas--which was a blast--and I quickly learned a few things:

a) I am not a natural at snowboarding. I did, in fact, fall down pretty much all day long and banged myself up pretty good. But still, I had a lot of fun and pretty much laughed all day long. By the end of the day, Garrett said that I had learned in a few hours what many learn in a few days. Just being a sweet, nice husband? Maybe. But I'll take it.

b) My body can't take abuse like it used to be able to. Okay, so I don't really think that 27 is old, but my body was telling me otherwise the day after snowboarding. I expected to be sore (and I was), but I didn't expect to have strained so many muscles and have whiplash so bad that I spent the next few days on pain medication. I'm too young to fall apart like that, right!? Or not??

c) I think I would have picked up on snowboarding much more easily about 15 years ago. I was amazed by all the five year olds zipping down the mountain on snowboards. How do they do that!? You can teach an old dog new tricks, but it's easier to teach as a puppy.

d) Despite the massive bruises and whiplash that are still lingering, I had a lot of fun snowboarding! I can see why my husband loves to snowboard and I would like to go a lot more and actually be able to ride down the mountain someday rather than crash down it. However, a part of me is scared: is it worth the possibility of repeating the painful repercussions afterwards?

Regardless, Merry Christmas to my honey who got exactly what he wanted with a bonus: plenty of video footage on his i-phone of me falling down all day for his continued enjoyment and laughter.

Kenadie's Kitchen

2011-12-26T10:00:00.000-09:00

Remember this old entertainment center found off craigslist?

Well, after weeks of sanding, sawing, painting, sewing, and a dozen other little projects, it has become this beautiful kitchen for the girls:

It was so much fun to create:

We found the faucet on an old sink in Grannie and Grandpa's barn, as well as the really cool vintage glass knobs we used for the stove.

A few dome lights served as the kitchen and oven lights.

The local thrift store provided fabric for curtains and little glasses and jars for the shelves.

And then I had to put in a "window" with a view of the Knik glacier. Who wouldn't want that view out of their kitchen window!?

To top it off, we added little hooks for aprons, oven mits, and spatulas, and painted one side with chalkboard paint so Kenners can scribble away!

It ended up being A LOT more work than I had ever imagined, but so much fun and so worth the excitement on Kenadie's face as she began cooking up a storm.

It's going to be a lot of fun having this toy in our home for years to come.

PS. I had to throw in a picture of the froggie jammies that I made for Kenadie, because they are so stinkin' cute :)

Reminders of what I am truly grateful for

2011-12-19T17:32:00.000-09:00

Four years ago I was working as a nurse at MD Anderson Cancer Center.

My patients came to that hospital from all over the world because their cancer had progressed so far that they had nowhere else to turn and no other treatments offered to them. Many of them were young with children still at home that they were raising. They had a lot to live for.

On the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day, a young mother checked herself into the hospital because she "just had been feeling strange" that day and had a feeling that it was her time to go. She had been battling an aggressive cancer that had finally settled into her brain. After eating Thanksgiving dinner with her family, she left her two young children at her mother's house and her husband drove her to the ER.

By the time she got to our floor, she had experienced a few large seizures that left her barely conscious and unable to communicate. A few hours later dozens of family members came to see her and say their goodbyes.

I can't forget the image of her 4 year old daughter sobbing as she was being carried out of her mother's hospital room by her uncle who was reassuring her that he would help take care of her. Her husband soon followed carrying their 19 month old son. I could tell he had been crying but was trying to keep his emotions under control.

I clocked out a few hours later and went home to eat Thanksgiving leftovers and watch a movie with my husband. That night, I thanked my Heavenly Father for my health.

***

A few days ago I had a horrible day at work. I even stooped to declaring it on facebook, as if anything good would come from it. I was on the verge of tears all day long dealing with numerous stressful situations. I remember thinking to myself several times, "I wish I could just quit and never come back!"

Towards the end of the day, I was setting up some IV medications for a patient who had been recently diagnosed with an aggressive form of lung cancer. Having been formerly well-acquainted with all different types of chemotherapy, I asked her what treatments she has been on and how she had been feeling. I offered her a few tips that many of my MD Anderson patients gave me about how they dealt with the side effects of treatment. She asked me how I knew so much and I told her I had worked in a cancer hospital. "So you know a lot about this then," she said. "Did you know that with my cancer I have a 30% chance of living past 2 years?" She paused for awhile and I could see tears begin to well up in her eyes. "I wish that I had the faith to know that everything will be okay no matter happens, but I don't know that I do, and that scares me. I don't know what is going to happen to me."

I pulled up a chair and sat down next to her. I held her hand. I talked to her. I shared with her my testimony of eternal families. I shared with her my belief in a loving Heavenly Father who will support us when we are at our lowest. I told her that if her journey with cancer ended in death, I knew that she would be reunited with her family again. Getting to sit and share with her a piece of my testimony was the best 5 minutes of my day. And then the chaos began once more that didn't see me getting home until after 8:30.

That night I thanked my Heavenly Father for my health.

***

Over the past few days I have been thinking about how every holiday season since I've been a nurse I have witnessed a lot of suffering and sadness with my patients. In the past I have summed these experiences up to reminders of how much I have to be grateful for. I have my health, I am raising my children (who are both healthy) alongside my best friend and husband (who is also healthy). I'm not spending the holiday season making preparations for who will help raise my children when I'm gone or when my spouse is gone. I'm not experiencing or having to witness my loved one experience chronic illness that may take their lives.

So I have felt a lot of gratitude for the gifts of health and family.

But in the past few days, I have been thinking that these experiences should not only serve to humble me and remind me of my earthly blessings, but to strengthen my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and to remind me of how grateful I am for Him, regardless of what is happening in my life. If the only things I'm truly being grateful for are my family and my health, than what will I have left if they are ever taken away?

Today I am so grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ. I am grateful to celebrate His birth because His earthly life and ministry have made it possible for me to be with my family forever. For all my patients who have suffered so much, their suffering will end and can result in a reunion with their family--one that will never have to end--all because of our Savior Jesus Christ.

I am so grateful for Him. I am grateful for the reminders in my life that his Atonement and Resurrection are the greatest gifts I have been given and the most important things to lean on in life's most difficult moments. And I am grateful for the brief moment I had to share that with someone else, which I guess kind of makes my "horrible day" a pretty good one after-all.

I am also grateful for the testimonies of others who can share this message in a much more eloquent way than I can. :)

This 'n That about Lila Claire

2011-12-19T15:07:00.000-09:00

Lila is probably the world's most-smiley baby

but

you'd never know it by looking at pictures of her.

As soon as the camera comes out, the smiling stops!

All the same, what a cute little baby.

***

Last week was rough on her--ear infection, snotty nose, fever, not sleeping well. And then last night when I got home from work, Garrett had me feel her bottom gums: lo and behold, a little sharp tooth poking out! I know most babies start getting teeth around 6 months old (or sooner), but Kenners was nearly 10 months old before she began teething, so it wasn't even on my radar! All of the sudden, she's not a little baby anymore.

***

She thinks her big sister if the funniest person on the planet. I'll have to figure out how to get a video uploaded from Garrett's phone onto here so you can see the proof, but watching my two girls interact is so fun.

***

She LOVES her Grandma Lila.

***

Confession: at six months old, I have no clue how long she is, how much she weighs, what percentile she is in, none of it! All I know is that just like her sister, she is pretty tall and has some impressive chubby cheeks. So yummy!

***

She has not been the biggest fan of solid foods and consequently, the phase of learning how to eat from a spoon seems to be dragging out.

She is a bottle junkie! :)

***

She is finally starting to roll over. Still no interest in crawling or even scooting yet. Why crawl when Mom will just hold you anyway, right!? :)

***

Opposite of her sister, she is a mommy's girl and much to my comfort, she is very forgiving and still wants her mom even when she hasn't seen me for a few days.

Melts my heart.

***

She is definitely the calming influence in our family.

Such a sweet little girl and we just adore her.

This 'n That about Kenners

2011-12-19T14:25:00.001-09:00

If I ever call Kenadie by her name these days, she points to herself and firmly reminds me that, "No! My is Astro Boy, Mom!"

Not even "Astro Girl". It's "Astro Boy".

Got it? Good.

***

We were getting ready to go to my cousin's wedding reception the other night. I decided to doll Kenners up and curl her hair in hopes that it would hold for the church the next day when I worked and Garrett would have the girls by himself.

It took a lot of work and bribing to get her to cooperate, but she looked sooo cute by the time I was done. I tried to take pictures and this is what I got:

Then two minutes later, she snuck into Lila's headbands and decided to further beautify herself...

She just kept saying how "gorgey" (or "gorgeous") she was.

I couldn't stop laughing. Does the image of Sloth from "The Goonies" not pop into your head?

***

Kenners LOVES to dance, and pretty much had the time of her life at my cousin Rachel's wedding.

***

Kenadie has also taken to wearing my name tag from work.

She is fixated on the fact that mommy goes to work and always remembers to add to her nightly prayers, "Thank-you Mommy work."

If ever I'm out of her sight during the day--even if it's just go to the bathroom for a minute--I'm sure to hear her shout throughout the house, "Mo-om! Where you? You go to work??"

***

Kenners becomes more of a daddy's girl every day. It is precious to see how much she adores her dad and looks to him every time she is sad, scared, or upset. I'm so grateful that my girls have such a great dad. :)

***

Boy, do I love this girl!

She is so spunky, sassy, funny, and an all-around-good-little-girl. She definitely has a temper, but she also has her very sweet and tender side that has been coming out more and more lately. Above all, I can always count of her to make me laugh everyday. Definitely the little spark in this family. :)

To my Cokeville Cousins:

2011-12-09T21:30:00.002-09:00

I was just thinking today.....

The last time I saw Tina was the summer that she and Eric came up to Alaska and Eric's elbow nearly destroyed her face while tubing behind the jet ski. I think that was 5 1/2 years ago.

I haven't seen Violet since before her mission, so about 6 years ago?

I haven't seen Taffy since Connor was a baby.

I think it's been at least 5 years since I've seen Heather.

6 years since I've seen Tyson.

I don't even know how long it's been since I've seen Ryan or Sullivan.

I was super lucky to see Tami, Livi, and Tessa for a brief few hours a year and a half ago.

So....we have a serious problem here! Let's just say that I'm a little excited for Oberg Reunion 2013 to get here already so we can rectify this situation. So you all better be there! :)

Yikes!

2011-12-07T22:31:00.000-09:00

Kenners has officially hit the "I do it myself!!!" phase.

She has to say her own prayers, brush her own teeth, and she especially has to dress herself.

So this is kind of what she has looked like lately:

4 headbands

a coat

church shoes

jeans

3 skirts

You know, some battles just aren't worth fighting....

Oh, Christmas tree!

2011-12-07T22:20:00.000-09:00

It's been a tiring week between crazy days at work and crazy days (and nights) at home with a sleep-deprived, nap-boycotting toddler who is learning to cope with a binky-less life.

And then there's the snotty-nosed baby who's had some hard nights. My poor little girls.

Throw in hours and hours of making Christmas gifts, and here we are a week into December with no tree or decorations....until tonight!

We cut down a tree on my parents' property, let it thaw out in the garage for a few days, and decorated it tonight as a "date night" after the kids were in bed.

Here are the finished results:

Not bad for a "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree, eh? Wild Alaska spruce usually make pretty raggedly-looking Christmas trees, but I think this one is actually pretty nice!

My favorite ornament given to me by my mom because the snowman's cheeks are so reminiscent of my babies' chubby cheeks:

It's definitely starting to feel like Christmas around here!

Now to continue with the Christmas gifts, because cleaning my disastrous house just doesn't seem like much fun right now.....

What have I done!?

2011-12-01T20:47:00.000-09:00

Look at this cute little mug:

Her world just got rocked to the core, and I think we're all in for a few (hopefully only a few) long nights. Today she discovered that her binkie "broke", or in other words: Garrett snipped the tip off while she wasn't looking.

Binkies have been strictly for bedtime only since Kenners turned one, but she has slept with that thing every night for the past two years. Garrett and I decided it was time to get rid of the pacifier since she's started throwing fits wanting it during the day recently.

I've been avoiding this night for awhile like one would avoid putting an old dog to sleep. It's necessary and time, but painful to do. So I had Garrett do it. And the waterworks were pretty immediate when we put her to bed and she discovered that her binkie "broke". And 30 minutes later, she is still crying. She throws tantrums and cries a lot anyway, but this is a heartbroken cry and it makes me so sad that I'm tempted to run to the store and get another one. She keeps crying from her room and through her sobs is calling out for me to "fix it" and keeps asking to "snuggle momma". Poor thing, I feel so bad! I can't wait until she gets used to the binkie's absence because as much as her heart is broken right now, mine may be even more so!

Let the holiday season begin!

2011-11-29T21:53:00.002-09:00

I would have actually said that last week, seeing as Thanksgiving week usually marks the beginning of the holidays for me, but it was a busy week and I was too pooped to blog about my, er....interesting day at work on Thanksgiving, the divine french silk chocolate ribbon pies that I made the day after Thanksgiving, and the Christmas gifts that I have started to create. But now that Christmas music is playing on Pandora 24/7, now that our Christmas cards are ready to be addressed and sent out in the mail, and now that I have eaten yummy turkey in half a dozen different ways the past few days, the holiday season finally feels like it is in full force!

And here's how I've been kickin' off the season.......

Look at this beaut:

In a few weeks it is going to be a stinkin'-cute play kitchen for Kenners. Can't wait to see the finished product!

And look at this pie:

I spent 40 minutes beating eggs into the pie filling and used a half pound of unsweetened chocolate bricks to make sure that it was the silkiest, chocolat-iest pie ever. All that effort was definitely worth the results, but thank heavens that pie is finally all eaten and I can move on with my life after experiencing the world's biggest chocolate coma. I hope I didn't knock too many years off my life for doing that to myself....

Garrett says I will certainly knock a few years of health of my life for doing things like this:

I don't think I multitask to this extent on a regular basis, but sometimes the floors must be swept, the baby must be held when I'm home, and how often do I get to speak on the phone to my sister in Minnesota these days?! (hardly ever!), So what's a mom to do!?

Well I'll tell you what: finish that piece of multitasking so I can work on my french-braiding skills:

I'm seeing a little improvement. And Kenners is seeing far too much of the "Astro Boy" movie in order to sit still so I can do her hair, bless her.

After those completely random tangents.....another way we've welcomed the holiday season this year is with the arrival of my brother Bret's new baby boy, Dallin Harvey Willardson! Congrats to Bret and especially to Jenny for birthing a nearly 10 pound bundle of love. No pictures of the little papoose yet, but from the looks of pictures that others have received on their i-phones, he is a cutie-patootie. Can't wait to meet him in a few short weeks!

Next on the holiday agenda: make Christmas jemmies for the girls and go out in the woods to cut down our Charlie Brown Christmas tree. :)

Life is pretty perfect

2011-11-23T19:38:00.000-09:00

I could not list all the things I am grateful for in my life. I tried once. I think I stopped in the 700's after listing paperclips and Q-tips. (Seriously, what would we do without those things!?)

So today, I'll just say this: I am grateful to be a citizen of the United States. I am grateful for the Book of Mormon. I am grateful for temples. I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And I am grateful for these people:

Oh, how I love my family.

Since I have to be separated from them on Thanksgiving Day, I'm grateful that at least I get to be serving others. I am so grateful for my job. :)

Introducing Dr. Garrett Christensen, DC

2011-11-18T20:59:00.000-09:00

This precious little boy....

...turned 30 today.

He also officially became a doctor of Chiropractic this afternoon.

Congratulations, babe. I'm so proud of all your hard work and passion for what you do. Your patients are certainly lucky people to have you as their chiropractor.

Happy Birthday. :)

Braidiness

2011-11-17T12:30:00.000-09:00

Well looky here!

What do you notice?

Is that a french braid in my hair!? That I did??

After mentioning in several blog posts over the past few years how I need to learn how to french braid, I finally decided to stop-procrastinating-and-just-teach-myself-darn-it for the following reasons:

1. Garrett pointed out that our toddler was beginning to look like an orphan with her long, flowing, ratted locks that never get touched on days that I work and often have remnants of her lunch tangled in her hair. Garrett tries to hold Kenadie down and put her hair into what should be a ponytail, bless his heart, but he mentioned that perhaps I should french braid Kenadie's hair the night before I work so that he (or my mom) won't have to brush that knotted mess the next day.

2. I've become completely annoyed with my stupid bangs (especially at work) and would love to braid them out of the way instead of pinning or twisting them back (I've been told lately that it's an outdated look!?).

So I've begrudgingly spent a lot of my recent late nights and early mornings working on the fine art of braiding. I know that 90% of girls over the age of 12 could french braid blindfolded, but I think it's kind of hard! I lack any and all finger dexterity. I won't tell you how long it took me to do this amateur braid above, nor how badly my dang elbow hurts from holding my arm up to get that braid looking half-way decent. Nor will I mention all the bribes I've had to use to get Kenadie to let me braid her hair. But I will tell you that I'm crossing my fingers that I get better at it soon, and I can finally cross "learn to french braid" off of my bucket list. Whew!

Bis-ay!

2011-11-10T14:27:00.000-09:00

What do you get when the following are combined into one week?

A chiropractic internship,
a full time nursing job,
two babies,
a lot of family close-by,
Garrett's parents visiting from out of town,
the baptism of our friends, the Flowerdew family,
and an early celebration of Garrett's 30th birthday and graduation (which is next Friday!).

Well, I'll tell you what you get:

little sleep
a lot of good food
great memories
lots of hugs and kisses
memorable spiritual experiences
a tired mommy and daddy
happiness
and a flat screen TV.

The above in pictures? Right this way......
The girls bonding with Papa and Grandma:

There is plenty of time for us all to bond:

Our hips bond with the extra calories from delicious banana boats that Kanani and Lanie helped me to make:

Garrett, Kenners, Maile, and Ethan bonding over their unsuccessful attempt at starting a fire in the middle of an infamous Palmer windstorm:

Garrett bonds with his new graduation/birthday present (can you tell he's just a little happy about this!?):

We loved spending so much time with family between our busy schedules.
We loved being a part of the Flowerdew's baptism and the special spirit that surrounds that family.
Garrett has been loving his TV and can't stop watching "Planet Earth" on it. He is so giddy. And I'm afraid he is now completely spoiled. :)

And now, we're pooped and in serious need of catching up on some sleeeeeep.....

To Lila

2011-11-05T11:36:00.000-08:00

Dear baby girl: Oh, how I've been missing you! I hardly put you down at all on Wednesday after working 3 days in a row (in which I didn't get to see you at all). "12 hour shifts" are actually code for "13 hour shifts minimum that usually end up being 14 hours". Your daddy is wonderful to take care of you and Kenners in the evening until I get home. It's usually no problem to keep Kenadie up at night so I can read to her and put her to bed once I get home; but you, little baby, can barely keep your eyelids open until 7:30pm--usually an hour before I even get home. Sad.
Sneaking into your room at night to see you sleep and smooch on your little cheeks just isn't the same as getting to interact with you while you're awake. I find that on the days I am home, everything else--besides you and your sister--gets severely neglected. I love to soak in all the time with you that I can. Though a large part of me detests being away from you at all, I see blessings come from sacrifice. On the weekends, your daddy gets to spend a lot of time with you and bond with you and your sister in a way that may not happen if I were here. Daddy and I have a unique gift in getting to understand exactly how the other feels in our respective "mommy duties" and "daddy duties": Daddy can appreciate how much work it is to manage the home and the kids, and Mommy can appreciate how dog-tired and in need of rest one can be after a long day of work. You and your sister also get to spend a lot of time bonding with your Grandma Willardson when Mommy is gone, and boy is she nuts about you (as are your Grandpa and aunties)! Yes, there are many blessings that do and will continue to come from this experience. However, I continue to pray that despite the "mommy absence" in your life right now, you will always feel how much I love you and that nothing is more important to me than you, your sister, and your daddy.
Love, Mommy

My Girls

2011-11-04T13:30:00.000-08:00

Kenadie has been having a blast interacting more and more with Baby Lila as she grows. For example, tub time is sooo much more fun with a friend:

as is an early-morning snuggle with your stuffed animals:

I do still have to frequently save Lila from the occasional physical abuse of her older sister, but overall Kenners is a great big sister and I am so glad that my girls will always have a built-in friend in each other as they grow up. :)

Refinishing madness!

2011-11-02T11:29:00.001-08:00

After many late nights of sanding, painting, and staining, we now have working and finished dressers to house all of our clothing! It FINALLY feels like we are mostly moved-in now that we don't have clothes spilling out of boxes and decorating the floors. Hooray!

Here's the first finished dresser in our room:

Garrett was so quick to start refinishing this one that I didn't get a "before" picture, which is a bummer because it was truly hideous, but I'm so excited about how it turned out!

Here's dresser #2 before:

and after:

And here is Kenadie's dresser before:

and after:

Grannie also graciously let us rid her barn of these end tables which we refinished black to match our bedroom dressers and are using as bedside tables.

No after picture yet, but they turned out great (and kind of look funny next to our mattress that just sits on the floor).

I still have one more hutch/dresser and a rocking chair to refinish, but I think they'll have to wait awhile because I have ambitions of repainting and sprucing up an old, wood play kitchen to give Kenners for Christmas. And hello, it's already November!?

Time is ticking, better get started!

Two Truths and a Lie

2011-10-30T21:53:00.000-08:00

The following info can be found on my driver's license:

1. eye color: hazel
2. hair: blonde
3. height: 5'8"

Which is the lie??

While you're stewing over it, here's some pictures of me and my adorable babes being goofy and having fun on Saturday morning:

I just love my little toots!

Halloween: Round 1

2011-10-26T13:39:00.000-08:00

My little sister Annie and her BFF Abby put on the cutest little Halloween party for all the little kids in our area a few weekends ago and it was such a blast! There were fun games, good food, plenty of candy, and even a haunted house. (Annie: you girls did an AWESOME job!)

Kenners went as Nemo this year, which she LOVED. We've had to hide the costume from her because she wants to have it on all the time!

And then Lila went as our little Devilish Angel.

So cute.
The whole family (plus the zombie that Kenners was terrified of):

(Garrett as Chuck Norris, me as a ninja)

The whole gang:

One Halloween party down. One more to go!

Take that!

2011-10-22T21:06:00.001-08:00

Made Dr. X smile (and say thank-you!).....check!
Had a successful IV start with crappy veins......check!
Washed and hid the Finding Nemo costume........double check!
Dresser for Kenadie's room refinished and awesome........check!
Grocery shopping, laundry, and meal-planning done.......triple check!
Smooched the livin' daylights out of my kiddos.......checkaroo!
Getting to go to church tomorrow for the first time in a month instead of having to work......check!

Now that's what I call a great end to what began as a crappy week! And I believe that all that productivity totally makes up for the fact that I have wussed out on the binkie weaning this week. Lazy mom? Maybe. But that was one awesome IV start! :)

Happy Sunday everyone.
Here's my spiritual inspiration for the week:

“You are doing God's work. You are doing it wonderfully well. He is blessing you, and He will bless you, --even--no, -especially--when your days and your nights may be most challenging. Like the woman who anonymously, meekly, perhaps even with hesitation and some embarrassment, fought her way through the crowd just to touch the hem of the Master's garment, so Christ will say to the women who worry and wonder and weep over their responsibility as mothers, `Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.' And it will make your children whole as well.”
~ Jeffrey R. Holland

She's starting to grow up!

2011-10-20T08:22:00.000-08:00

Little Lila has discovered the joys of using her hands to shove anything and everything into her mouth.

This has been a big blessing for me as she is now able to entertain herself for small segments of time.

I say small, because this baby's true desire and contentment is to be held and paid attention to and if she begins to feel neglected, she has the pipes to voice her disapproval.

She is so different from her independent, big sister who was content to play by herself for long periods of time (and still is) and who was practically crawling by this age.

But little Lila? She has not even made an attempt to roll over at her 4 1/2 months.

And I'm pretty okay with it. These last few months have been such a busy blur that I do not want my baby to grow up too fast!

It is fun to watch her begin to play with toys and enjoy her exer-saucer, though.

Love!

Our home so far....

2011-10-20T08:07:00.001-08:00

Progress on unpacking and refinishing furniture has been slow and it still continues. In fact, here's a little peek at Kenadie's room:

We don't have finished dressers for clothes yet, so all our clothing has been in big bins. As you can see, Kenners enjoys repeatedly dumping out the bins and creating big messes. :)

And here's our room so far:

Also a mess with just a mattress for our bed and a little Kenners to un-make the bed by 10am every morning.
But.....at least the living area of our home is beginning to look presentable!

Our family/TV room.

Everything in this room--the rug, end table, couches (with memory foam cushions!), TV, entertainment stand, and large, solid wood cradle (that we are keeping blankets in for now) were all purchased for under $600. I love craigslist! :)

The view from our living room:

The view from the front door:

Our ginormous, solid wood bookshelf that we got for $50:

Our in-perfect-condition keyboard that Garrett found at the dump (score!):

Hooray for fiNaLly getting settled in!
Coming soon: before-and-after photos of the three dressers and two nightstands that we are refinishing. Stay tuned.......

Love these girls!

2011-10-19T23:06:00.000-08:00

I have to admit: I had a blast living with my parents for out first two months back in Alaska.

Of course it was time to move on, but I loved spending so much time with my parents and my little sisters.

On our last night at my parents house, my sweet sisters planned a "girls' night": popcorn, root beer, and watching the chick flick "Beastly". So fun!

It's been a few weeks since we've moved out, and I already think it's time for me to host a little girls' night over here..... :)

Farewell, Fall

2011-10-17T16:08:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago in the midst of our moving frenzy, we decided to take the afternoon off from unpacking to hike the Butte and enjoy one of the last nice days before the winter sets in.....

The hike was gorgeous.

Kenadie had a blast hiking and insisted on doing it all herself.

Baby Lila (or "Lala" as Kenadie has been calling her lately) was a little angel chillin' in the Moby Wrap.

The family at the top:

The ladies: me, baby Lila, Mommy Lila, and Annie.

Of course no outing with Kenners would be complete without getting herself completely dirty....

She did a nice little face plant into the dirt on the way down, but it didn't faze her one bit. She just kept running down the trail!

And of course, this morning we woke up to SNOW! So long, Fall. Now bring on the hot chocolate and blankeys!

Lessons and Goals

2011-10-17T07:44:00.001-08:00

Take-home lessons from work this week:
1. Really, really, REALLY: don't do drugs, kids. Just don't.
2. Dr. X is a grouch.
3. I am no longer an "IV Master". :( Skills must be regained!
4. Time flies when you're overloaded with work. 12 hours sometimes feels like 2!
5. Get a hospital ice machine for my home someday. It's like Sonic ice, but even better.

Take home lessons from mommyhood this week:
1. Don't wake up the sleeping children when you get home from work just because you haven't seen them all day. Just don't. Screaming, cranky children are not a fun consequence.
2. Daddy's are just better at soothing the child with night terrors. No mommy's allowed!? :(
3. My children are scrumptious.
4. The scrumptiousness of my children have slowed the unpacking and furniture refinishing to a snail's
pace. So I plan to be be unpacked by Christmas. :)
5. "Finding Nemo" costume = best find ever!
6. I don't know if I'll ever get that costume off of Kenners......

Goals for this next week:
1. Binkie-weaning for Kenadie.....so scared for this. Hellllp meeeee!
2. Repaint dresser for Kenadie's room.
3. Get Dr. X to crack a smile.
4. Once more become an expert IV starter.
5. Get that Nemo costume off Kenadie and into the washer.

Seeing past what it seems

2011-10-10T20:42:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, I happened upon this awesome website called the "Brave Girls Club" and read this post. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since. The post uses a powerful personal experience to encourage others to practice "seeing past what things seem" more often in our lives, or in other words: being quick to understand and slow to judge.

I believe that the majority of people--myself included--could learn from the wisdom of that post. We're all human and we aren't perfect. I think that if everyone had perfectly mastered the art of being quick to understand and slow to judge, then there wouldn't be much of a need for us to go through this life test of becoming more like our Savior.
Sometimes I think we women are extra-cursed with this bad habit of judging. We like to know what's going on with others so that we can help them out and form meaningful relationships with them. For that innate desire and inclination to love and serve others, I'm glad to be a woman. However, sometimes this innate goodness gets a little twisted. We begin to want to know a little too much about others' lives. We begin to analyze what people do, how people do them, why they do them, and we begin to judge them. We forget that they might be struggling with something personal or hidden. We forget that they are usually just trying to do their best. We may not all be Chatty Cathys or super gossipy, but it can be quite easy to silently and unfairly judge others from time to time. Since reading the Brave Girls post, I have been more aware of how often I pass silent judgment and it has been driving me nuts. Time for a change!

I decided to make an early New Year's Resolution. I know it's a few months early, but it's far better than the 31st of December arriving only to find myself thinking, "Crap, I need to make a resolution! Uh......okay, I'm going to exercise every morning and write a novel. Yeah, sounds good!" I pretty much fail at those horridly thought-out resolutions by mid-February. Not to say that I'll master this resolution easily, but I want to really make this change. I want to envision everyone I meet, talk to, or think about as having a sign hung around their neck that reminds me why I need to be more understanding and less judgmental.

I hope that by this time next year, I won't have to catch myself passing judgment quite so often but will frequently remember that we are all just doing our best.

Thanks, Brave Girls, for the visual and the new goal. And really, you should check out their blog. So uplifting! :)

Strengthened and Supported when we need it

2011-10-07T20:43:00.000-08:00

There were a few times during Garrett's schooling when people would ask me how we managed to get by financially.

I would often tell them about all my frugal habits: eating lots of homemade whole wheat bread, making my own cleaning solutions and laundry detergents, having cheap cell phones with zero texting or picture-taking capabilities, sewing Kenadie jammies out of my old shirts, etc.

But who am I kidding!? I mean sure, being a penny pincher certainly helped, but when it really comes down to it, I believe that the Lord strengthened and supported our family and our needs during Garrett's schooling. That is truly how we "lived off so little". When I crunch the numbers, there is no other explanation for the "how" of certain things other than this: my Heavenly Father knows me, loves me, and takes care of me.

I probably should have remembered this principle a lot more this past week.....

What a week!

We moved into our cutie-patootie house which ended up being very dirty and in need of new paint in some of the rooms. So after long days of work, Garret and I have been spending all evening (and the wee hours of the morning) chipping away at the cleaning and painting.

And then I had an overwhelming, crummy day at work today. Nothing major, but it just brought on the waterworks during my drive home and I couldn't help but think:

Am I really leaving my babies all day to have stinky days like this!? How can I possibly be a focused, good nurse with an overwhelming job and then come home and be a focused, good mom and wife? How is my absence at home going to affect my girls and my husband? How am I supposed to create an organized, loving atmosphere in my home?

How am I going to do it?

Well, I have no clue.

I can't logically come up with the "how".

Perhaps the situation I find myself in now is just another opportunity for me to see the Lord work miracles in my life and remind me that as long as I'm doing what I can, he'll make up for the rest.

Living the poor college student life may not have seemed ideal to others; being a mom who works full-time certainly doesn't seem ideal to me.

But the Lord figured out the "how" of things back then, so all that's left to do is for me to see how he'll create the "how" now, because I know He will.

He always does.
And for that knowledge, I am so grateful.

They say that Necessity is the Mother of Invention

2011-09-30T17:37:00.000-08:00

I also think that it is the Mother of forcing people to discover new hobbies and interests.

For example: refinishing furniture.

I stink at it, but I have recently picked it up out of necessity.

We had to sell/give away/throw away most of our possessions when we moved from Minnesota (including all our furniture), so I have scoured Craigslist (and Grannie's barn!) for some furniture to furnish our home with and found some screaming deals.

I have found enough solid wood pieces to nearly furnish our whole house without having to spend much at all!

Of course a lot of the furniture I found have been diamonds in the rough, so I have spent most early mornings and late nights working on refinishing furniture while the girls sleep.

My projects so far......

My old childhood desk that my mother no longer uses and graciously let me have and refinish:

It has been yellow for the past 17-ish years, but after a lot of stripping, sanding, painting, and staining, it has become this beauty:

Merry Christmas to me. Thanks, Mom!

And then I found a small "desk" for Kenners to have in her room and decided to have it match the big one:

Grannie had four chairs like this sitting in her barn:

I originally thought that I would use them as dining chairs, but after finding a solid oak dining table with 6 great chairs for $75, I decided to have some fun refinishing and antiquing these chairs in different ways and this is what I came up with:

And my next projects? To refinish/paint this pigeon-poop encrusted rocking chair:

And refinish this dresser:

I also have a hutch and another large dresser to refinish.

This refurnishing stuff has become slightly addicting and has actually been a lot of fun. And I can't wait to get it all into the house.
One day more. :)

(Another day, another destiny. This never-ending road to Calvary......oh Les Mis, I love you! Please come to Alaska so that my husband can surprise me with tickets to come see your show after a delicious dinner of sushi. Please.)

Moving Again!

2011-09-30T17:31:00.000-08:00

But not out of the state.

(I told Garrett that if we were going to move up here, it better be for awhile.

Too much moving in the past ten years. I'm exhausted.)

We're actually just moving a few miles away into a cute little house.

That's right: a HOUSE! With our own garage. With our own washer and dryer. With appliances that aren't falling apart. With a yard for the girls to play in and a patio to grill on.

Please pinch me and tell me that I'm not dreaming!! I'm just a little excited........

So we're moving tomorrow (yay!). Garrett is out doing the massive grocery and household shopping trip,

and I am trying to rectify the fact that baby Lila has far too few pictures taken of her.

Is she not a doll!?

I know I've said it before, but she is perfect. So cute. So cuddly. Loves to babble. Loves to sleep. Perfect.

And then there's my awesome and sassy Kenners:

I'm loving soaking in every moment with my girls before I go back into the workforce full-time next week. I'm happy, excited, nervous, and sad about it all at the same time.

Hard to leave my little toots, but so blessed to have a job that I actually enjoy, incredible family nearby, and the cutest girls on the planet to come home to.

Oh yeah, and that husband of mine. He is pretty fantastic as well. :)

Pretty sure that life doesn't get better.

Finally!

2011-09-28T07:43:00.000-08:00

Nearly four months after baby Lila's birth,

I give you the first family photo:

It took a lot to get this photo....

Kenners would NOT sit on Daddy's lap without a fight.

So off of Daddy's lap she went!

Then Kenners insisted on hitting her baby sister a few time and making her cry.

Then she began to cover her eyes.

And we only got a decent picture after she insisted on having a picture of just herself!

But, if you remember this post, than you'll know that Kenadie's behavior in this family photo shoot is a vast improvement from the family photo shoot from last summer. :)

And of course, a picture of just Garrett and I. So rare these days.

Of course, that photo only came after a photo like this one:

hmm....I wonder where Kenadie gets it!?

And then we took pictures of my family (and their dog Dakota):

which only came after pictures like these:

Stop the madness!

Apparently, Kenadie's antics run in the family.....

Seriously!

2011-09-24T22:09:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry, but she's just too kissable!

Stop Growing!

2011-09-20T16:29:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time, Kenadie was a chubby 11 month old with a saggy diaper and completely obsessed with "Single Ladies".

Now, she is a sassy two year old who watches morning cartoons with her sister.

How'd that happen so fast!?

Showing me how old she is:

Oh Kenners, you are too much fun!

Who's who??

2011-09-14T14:36:00.000-08:00

Here are both of my girls at 3 months old and in the same outfit.

Can you tell who's who?

I'll give you a hint.....Picture #1: Lila. Picture #2: Kenadie. Picture #3: Kenadie. Pictures #4 & #5: Lila.

Of course they both have their own unique "look", but sometimes when I compare photos side-by-side, they look like the same baby!

Ready for Take-off

2011-09-14T10:57:00.000-08:00

Kenadie's new favorite fashion statement.

The family's new ab work-out thanks to all the laughter.

Fair Time!

2011-09-09T07:35:00.000-08:00

After a 10 year absence, I was finally able to go back to the Alaska State Fair this year.

Definitely not the caliber of a state fair like Minnesota's,
but the Alaska State Fair used to be my life every year those first two weeks of September. 7am-7pm.
Showing my sheep, auctioning my sheep, working shifts in the petting zoo, eating funnel cakes and BBQ turkey legs, and riding the rides that would now probably make me puke.
The fair was a little different this time without having a 4-H animal but having 2 little kids. Different meaning a complete blast.
I still worked a shift at the petting zoo for good times' sake.
But the rest of the fair was just about having a lot of fun with Kenners while Lylee tagged along pleasantly like the sweet little baby that she is.

Kenners loved the barn animals and all the fun rides (which she never wanted to get off of).

We ate delicious fried "fair food".
We watched my beautiful and talented niece Alani sing and play her guitar on the Bluebonnet stage and for Alaska's Got Talent.

I also worked very hard to get Kenners to stop staring at the very, umm....interesting people that state fair crowds attract. (Could hardly blame her though. Yikes.)
And I marveled at the patience and contentment of my little Lylee while we drug her around day after day at the fair.

I think we're good and worn out from the fair.
Now bring on the fall/hot chocolate weather/crafting season.
I have some good projects in mind for this winter and I can't wait to get started....

Reason #584 why I love Alaska:

2011-09-07T13:31:00.000-08:00

I mean, really!

Each head of lettuce could feed an army.

Best time of the year to be in AK.

And reason #585:

It has been much easier to find employment here than in Minnesota.

I got a job! Woohoo!

I will be working as a nurse in the hospital on the medical-surgical floor and pediatrics floors.

It still is not my dream job of being a labor and delivery nurse.....

...but, it's close to home (no commute!),

I get to be in the hospital again,
and it's a job, for heaven's sake!

I'm really looking forward to using all my "skills" again.

You know: starting IV's, inserting NG tubes, the whole shebang.

I have to admit, I've been getting a little teary-eyed just thinking about leaving my little munchkins to go back to work full time.
I definitely look forward to the day when I can just be a full-time mom.
But until then, I'm grateful to have a profession that I actually enjoy
and that I have been able to find good employment in an economy like this. What a blessing!
Plus, I don't start until October, so I get to spend another month soaking up precious time with my little ladies.
Life is great.

And have I mentioned that I love Alaska!? :)

Kennergy

2011-09-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

All summer long I've been looking forward to moving to Alaska for the simple fact that Kenners would have all the space in the world to run around and play.

I envisioned that all the space combined with being surrounded by her grandparents, aunties, and cousins would make her a very happy girl and perhaps would result in fewer assaults on her baby sister.

Well, Alaska has not disappointed!

I've never seen her better behaved and I've definitely never seen her happier.

I've never had to change 3+ muddy outfits of hers every day either, but it's been well worth it!

She LOVES grandpa's four wheeler and would like to be on it 24/7.

She is finally understanding that sometimes the four wheeler has to "take naps" so she can't always ride it.

Most every morning she feeds the animals with my sisters, rain or shine.

Kenners also loves to sit in the Fisher Price car and talk to herself.

And what two year old can resist make massive messes when given the opportunity!?

She is learning to share and has been placing everything that is within reach into her baby sister's lap.

Grandpa has insisted that this busy bee doesn't have energy, she has "Kenner-gy"!

(um, that is a knee pad that she insists on wearing around her chest)

Grandpa also calls her the "Kenner-gizer Bunny" because she, you know, "keeps going and going".

Our move up here to Alaska hasn't been without its stresses as we are figuring life out (and there is a lot to figure out!), but I have been having a blast observing Kenadie have so much fun.
The only downside?

She is thousands of miles away from her Ellis cousins, and when she asked to go to "Bwookie's house" the other day, I had to fight the lump out of my throat. Ellis fam: are you ready to move to AK yet?? We miss you. :(

How I Deal with Telemarketers

2011-08-31T11:03:00.000-08:00

It has been quite a few years since I have had a land line and have had to deal with telemarketers.

I feel for telemarketers. A thankless job where no one wants to talk to you....

...but all the same, I can't stand telemarketers!

I'm not rude enough to just hang up on them

but once I let them start their spiel, they will never stop or back down when I say "no, thank-you".

Thank heavens for this modern age of caller ID when I can see an 800 number or "caller unknown" show up on the phone to warn me not to answer the phone.

However, telemarketers are relentless (or very dedicated to their job) and keep calling.

This has been super annoying since we've been crashing with my parents who actually have a land line (and many-a-telemarketer call every day).

The phone is ringing off the hook.

So a few days ago I came up with a different solution besides just ignoring the phone when it rings every 10 minutes:

I let Kenners answer the phone

and allow her to jabber to the telemarketer all she wants.

So far today, we've seen a dramatic drop in the number of phone calls from telemarketers.

Sometimes, I think I'm brilliant.

Scrumptious

2011-08-31T09:51:00.000-08:00

I've said it before.

I'll say it again:

baby Lila is a little angel.

She is very content

a super sleeper

is learning the fine art of sucking her thumb

has an awesome pair of cheeks to rival her sister's (yum!)

and is completely adored by her family, especially her cousin Kassi.

I could have a half dozen more like her, she is such an easy and perfect baby.

Reed Lakes

2011-08-27T09:33:00.000-08:00

Last week Garrett and I went on a much-needed afternoon date.
We went on one of my favorite hikes to Reed Lakes.
The hike includes views of a beautiful river, two aquamarine lakes, a waterfall, and gorgeous mountains.
Garrett said he half-expected Frodo Baggins and Company to come bounding through the mountains because the surroundings look so much like a scene from one of the Lord of the Rings movies. It is so beautiful.

Unfortunately, it POURED rain on our way back down the 10 mile hike, so we couldn't take many pictures and I ended up falling down most of the slippery, muddy mountain.
But here are some pictures we got of the beeeeeautiful hike:

Sitting on the edge of a waterfall...

Ahhh! Feels good to be home and surrounded by such beauty. :)

Hardcore

2011-08-27T09:21:00.001-08:00

Remember this picture??

Kenadie has been dubbed a "hardcore" niece by her uncle Joey because of this picture.

And she continues to be so, only now she is using spatulas for weapons (and running around naked!?).

Auntie Sadie has taught Kenners to pump her fist in the air and shout "Hardcore!". Sadie says it is their mission statement and Kenners will now shout it upon request.

Joey, you getting excited yet to come home for Christmas?? :)

Jim Creek

2011-08-26T15:05:00.001-08:00

There is a popular place to go fishing and four-wheeling up here where Jim Creek and the Knik River meet.

We went out with our Christensen family the other week to play on the sandy (yes, sandy!) beach and have a hot dog roast.

So much fun!

It's a bumpy, muddy road to get out there, but all vehicles made it intact with only one breaking down along the way.

We are having such a blast enjoying Alaska and being with family.

Upon telling friends and acquaintances in Minnesota that we were moving to Alaska, we received multiple comments like "why would you want to move up there!?", or "I hope you like cold weather!" (which is funny, because Minnesota winters are often as cold if not colder than Alaska winters).
Well, of the many factors that influenced our decision to live up here, this is just one of them:

Luckily, most people have no clue how beautiful or awesome it is up here or it would probably be pretty overpopulated. I really do think that Alaska (specifically the valley where I live) is one of the world's best-kept secrets.

So for all you wondering what Alaska is like or if you should move here: sure, it stinks.. Total frozen wasteland. Don't even bother. :)

(Okay, unless your family and friends--and then please feel free to visit us!)

Blessings

2011-08-26T13:10:00.000-08:00

Blessing #1:

I made the 6 hour plane ride to Alaska with my two girls a few weeks ago.

I was prepared with plenty of snacks, a portable DVD player with movies for Kenadie, and a car seat to strap her into (to prevent escapes into the aisle).

Kenners was prepared with some kick-happy legs that annoyed the heck out of the guy sitting in front of her. I felt bad, but thought that if it was the worst thing that happened on the flight, I'd be extremely happy.

Then a few minutes before take-off and right when I thought no one else would be sitting on my right (hallelujah), a lady who could barely walk and who was extremely heavy sat next to me, leaving me with only about 1/2 of my seat left for myself and Lila. No matter, I thought. This lady is probably really nice.

I smiled at the lady and said "hi".

She looked at me, looked at Lila, and said, "Now this little baby is going to sleep the whole way and not cry or fuss at all right? So I can get some rest. You promise, right little baby??"

Well, we survived the flight, and that was a blessing.

Blessing #2:

Garrett and my dad made the 3500+ mile drive to Alaska from Minnesota without any car trouble or falling asleep at the wheel, all in 65 hours (that must be a record or something).

Both were a little brain-dead for a day or two, but they made it safe and sound pulling a small trailer with all our belongings.
Oh yeah, this is the view from our home. So blessed!

Blessing #3:

A few days after Garrett and my dad made it to Alaska, Garrett was able to give baby Lila a blessing and name in church.

It was so special to have so much of both families present for Lila's blessing: both sets of grandparents, both of Garrett's sisters and their families, two of my sisters, and my Aunt Peggy.

Lila had a very special connection with her Great Aunt Peggy:

Family is such a blessing and I'm so happy to be here in Alaska surrounded by so many of them.

I am also feeling very blessed to have little Lila in our family.

She has really settled into life the past few weeks and become quite the happy little baby. She is also just about as sweet and as cute as they come.
Such a blessing in our family.

Love her.

We're here!

2011-08-19T10:25:00.000-08:00

Hi, it's me!

Yes, I still exist.

Yes, we made it to Alaska.

Yes, we've been busy settling in, spending time with family, and enjoying the beautiful weather, fresh air, and mountains.

I'm a bit behind on blogging

and I have quite a bit to blog about:

Kenadie's obsession with Grandpa's four wheeler.

Baby Lila's extreme cuteness and love for her Auntie Annie.

Outings with our Christensen family to Jim Creek.

Baby Lila's blessing day.

Multiple hikes up Hatcher's Pass, including a hike to Reed Lakes which Garrett says is "the best hike I've ever been on".
Visiting with my Aunt Peggy and her seeing eye dog, Nelson.

The managed chaos and hilarity of living with my family.

Stay tuned.

I'll get around to blogging eventually.

For now, here's a little visual morsel of my kissable baby girl:

So yummy!

Packing, Puking, and Justin Bieber, oh my!

2011-08-05T11:59:00.001-08:00

Just a few days from the big move and I feel kind of like a chicken running around with its head cut-off, but that's okay because I don't mind being busy, and I'm really excited to see so much of both the Willardson and Christensen families in just 3 days! :)

Beyond packing, here's a little morsel of what's been happening this week:

~ I got the worst case of strep throat I think I've ever had. (At least I got sick well before we have to fly to Alaska!)

~ Kenadie's vocabulary never ceases to make me laugh. She says "crap-apillar" for caterpillar, and "crap" for crab. Lovely, huh? :)

~ Kenadie got to play with her cousins this week. Both she and Brookie asked for each other when they woke up from their naps. It warms my heart how they love each other, and breaks my heart that they are going to be separated. :(

~ Kenadie has witnessed Brookie's potty-training in progress and now has an obsession with wanting to sit on the toilet (though she doesn't really get the concept of what it's for, yet) and fill it with the entire roll of toilet paper after "wiping" herself. To her, the potty is just a really fun game. silly girl!

~ Had to take Lila to the ER a few nights ago with a fever. As sad as it was, her miniature hospital gown was the cutest thing in the world, as well as her miniature IV.

~ Celebrated 4 years of wedded bliss last night with sushi and a couples' foot massage. Heaven!

~ Kenadie has a bad case of "Bieber Fever". If Garrett knew how often she watches Justin Bieber music videos and how well she knows the lyrics, he'd kill me.

~ Kenadie has a literal fever now and puked all over her babysitter this morning on her way home. (Many apologies to Jan and Ann Marie Christensen, and thanks so much for watching her!!)

~ I have informed Garrett that he is NOT allowed to get sick!

Other than that, it's business as usual. Packing, smooching on Lila (who gets more precious by the hour), and hearing Kenadie's repeated "no touchy!!" when I try to smooch on her. Have we already reached the age when mom kisses are no longer cool!? Sad day!

And now, north to Alaska.......

Four Years

2011-08-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

The past four years have produced the following:

1 marriage

2 babies

1 Bachelor's degree

1 completed doctorate degree in Chiropractics

3 different nursing jobs

residence in 4 different state

and a whole lot of fun mixed in between.

They have been the best years of my life so far. And here's to many, many more. I love you, Gar!

Let me explain

2011-07-31T18:00:00.000-08:00

The other day my brother Joey reprimanded my for not posting pictures of the girls in over a week. What mischief had Kenners been causing? What does baby Lila look like now?

Well, let me explain.

A whole lot of this has been going on at our house:

Kenners has been in "box heaven", we've been packing like mad, and Lila has been a trooper dealing with the craziness.

One week until moving day

and I have had a lot of happy and sad emotions.

I'll miss a lot of things about Minnesota.

I'll miss our friends.

I'll miss my sister and her family (and so will Kenners!).

I'm excited to be an Alaskan again.

I can't wait to see all our family and to live so clsoe to them.

It hardly seems real.

But it's happening. Holy cow!

So, if I happen to be absent for a little while, that is why.

In the next few weeks I'll be packing up, celebrating my 4 year wedding anniversary, flying solo with the munchkins to Alaska, hopefully finding super sweet employment and a place to live, and enjoying time with both Garrett's family and my family.

Mom Guilt

2011-07-31T17:51:00.001-08:00

Over the years I have heard multiple women say that Mother's Day is not their favorite day because it reminds them of all the "mom guilt" that they have.

"Mom guilt"!? Even after becoming a mom, I didn't really understand what the heck these women were talking about.

Don't get me wrong; I don't think, by any means, that I am a perfect mom. I realize that I am far from it. But I've never felt like I was a bad mom, either. Why should I ever have any "mom guilt"?? And then enter baby #2.....

When I'm taking care of Lila (or packing, or eating, or even just going to the bathroom) and Kenners is begging for attention by running over her sister with her baby stroller or throwing a tantrum, I feel guilty for neglecting Kenadie.

When it's time to take care of or play with Kenadie (or to do other tasks) and I have to just let the baby cry, I feel guilty.

So this is what the other moms meant by "mom guilt"!

Going from having one child that I can focus all my attention on to having two children has definitely been enlightening and has put a whole new spin on motherhood. I realize that I can't be everything and everywhere all at once--though I wish I could--and sometimes it can be a hard pill to swallow.

Luckily, I have a wise mother who has reminded me to do my best, take it one day at a time, leave the rest to the Lord, and enjoy the journey. (Aren't moms the best?!)

So that's what I'm attempting to do; and make no mistake, this is worth every minute. (P.S. I'm determined to not let any "mom guilt" spoil my Mother's Days. Bring on the flowers, bed in breakfast, and chocolates, please!)

These little ladies make me a mommy (how cool is that!?):

Kenadie before church today, winking for the camera.

Sweet baby "Lylee" conked out.

Tell me she is not the most scrumptious little sleeping baby you've ever seen!

Brain Spew

2011-07-22T20:12:00.001-08:00

We should be emerging from a record-breaking heatwave this weekend: hallelujah! I'm not the biggest fan of 122 degree heat indexes.

I am embarrassingly excited about the "Once Upon a Child" sale tomorrow ($15 for all you can fit into a big paper grocery bag). I'm planning on outfitting the girls for at least a year or two....

I am rediscovering the awesomeness of house-hunting and job hunting, and all while I'm in a completely different state!

Have you ever watched "Finding Nemo" four times in one day or looked at the clock at 5pm and thought, "Maybe we should all get dressed and out of our pajamas"?

Are you thinking, "laziest mom ever" yet?

Kenadie has started to speak a few full sentences this week and I'm weirded out.

I will miss the "baby Chinese talk".....

It took me all evening a few nights ago just to pack up all our books.

I'm a little concerned about packing up everything else with just 2 weeks remaining.....

As much as I don't like packing, I kind of like it at the same time.....

Anyone want to buy my bike stroller?

Anyone have any advice about how to survive an airport and subsequent 6 hour flight with a hyperactive 2 year old and a newborn?

I'm speaking in church on Sunday about the Mormon Pioneers. I actually enjoy preparing talks for church and don't mind speaking in front of large crowds, but I'm a little intimidated over this topic. Help?

Lila has been shimmy-ing down in her Boppy to get nice and snug when she sleeps. It's I think it's time to have her start sleeping without it, but she's so darned cute!

Do you like my toddler's artwork on the arms of the chair in the above picture?

I kinda forgot how I did things when Kenadie was an infant (selective memory from the colic days, perhaps?) and sometimes I feel like a first-time parent again. We're having a difficult time establishing a sleep routine for Lila and I don't know if it's her or just me....

I've been having some serious cravings for Cafe Rio. If you live in Utah, please go enjoy a pork burrito (extra meat, enchilada style, lime cilantro dressing on the side) for me. Thanks!

115

2011-07-19T06:56:00.000-08:00

That was the heat index yesterday.

Yuck.

The only time this kind of heat and humidity is nice

is when you can sit by the pool and occasionally jump in to keep cool.

Unfortunately, it's kind of difficult to do with a newborn and a toddler.

Plus, our pool area is full of people who are smoking, drinking, and look like they're about to pass out, puke, or hurt someone.

That combined with not being able to go anywhere (Garrett has the car all day during the week)

leaves us with staying at home and inside.

And here is the result so far this week:

A cabin-fever-Kenadie

up at 6:30am, refusing naps, and fighting sleep until after 9pm,

made 5 big messes and stomped on her baby sister 3+ times,

swiped a binkie from who-knows-where,

drew all over the recliner again with blue ink,

has been begging to walk outside all day,

is a little on the cranky side.

Poor girl.....

But hey, at least we're keeping cool! :)

Chocolate Cherry Granola Bars

2011-07-18T05:06:00.000-08:00

Last year I was on a big kick of trying new, yummy recipes and posting them on my blog.

Then I got pregnant

and I couldn't stand the thought of food.

And then I had a baby

and have not had much time to be creative in the kitchen since.

However,

Garrett has.

A few months ago, a friend of ours shared with us a recipe for homemade granola bars.

Since then, Garrett has been tweaking the recipe to his liking

and I think we have a winner.

They are sooooo yummy!

You can eat them as a chewy granola bar, or crumble it up into a bowl and pour milk over it for some dang-good cereal.

After an exhausting week last week and what is shaping up to be another busy week, I decided that I may need some of these granola bars around for caloric sustenance, so last night I whipped up a double batch while Garrett wrestled and cuddled the little ladies.

I thought I would share this recipe as I have already eaten two bars and Garrett took four with him to clinic today. (I probably should have quadrupled the batch)

They really are so delish!

Some of the ingredients are a little out-of-the-ordinary,

but well worth the investment.

Garrett's Chocolate Cherry Granola Bars with Almonds

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup agave nectar

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 tsp vanilla

4 Tbsp cocoa powder

2 cups dry rolled oats

1 cup chopped roasted almonds

1 cup dried cherries, chopped (chopping them a bit helps make the granola bar hold together better)

1. Spread oats onto a rimmed cookie sheet and bake in oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Take oats out and allow to cool.

2. Combine oats, almonds, cherries, and cocoa powder into a large bowl and mix well.

3. Combine the honey, agave nectar, coconut oil, and vanilla into a saucepan and bring to a boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Remove honey mixture from heat and immediately add to the bowl with the oats. Stir until all ingredients are well blended.

5. Press the oats into a 9x9 inch square pan lined with aluminum foil and well-greased. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

6. Remove and allow to cool completely (usually takes a few hours) before cutting into bars.

*You can experiment using different nuts, seeds, and dried fruits. You may also leave the cocoa powder out. I have just become particular to this combination of ingredients, and let's be honest, chocolate makes the world go 'round.

Did you know....

2011-07-16T12:50:00.004-08:00

....that my heart has recently doubled in size to hold all the love I have for this little peanut?

.....that she loves to be held?

......that she hates to be set down (and has the most incredibly loud diva cry to express her anger)?

(Once Mommy finally gets around to holding her, Lila promptly stops crying and passes out!)

.....that she is an awesome sleeper at night, often making it a 6 hour stretch between feedings? Heaven!

....that she is becoming quite the little smiler, earning her the nick-name "Smiley Ly-lee"? (I've only been able to get a half-smile on camera so far....)

...that she is the epitome of a "sweet baby"?

....that despite the exhaustion that comes from having two demanding little girls, life with them is absolutely perfect?

Well, now you know!

A Little Family Getaway

2011-07-16T11:55:00.001-08:00

Last week we took a last-minute road trip north to Duluth on the shores of Lake Superior.

We've always heard that it is beautiful up there but had never been in our three years as Minnesotans.

Garrett was adamant that we were not going to leave this state without going to Duluth

and last Friday seemed to be the only day available to go before we move, so on Thursday night we decided to just go the next morning!

We had a blast.....minus the road trip part.....if Lila wasn't crying, then Kenners was taking her turn exercising the vocal chords, all the way there (3 hours) and nearly all the way back.

It was a happy reminder to me of how grateful I am that the girls and I will not be making the long drive up to Alaska next month!

But besides the driving, we had so much fun!

We played for hours on the rocky beach.

Kenadie could have thrown rocks in the water all day long if we had let her.

And she loved sliding down the big rocks into the water.

Garrett went for a swim...

And I just chilled with "Baby Ly-lee" and played photographer.

We also went "hiking" to see Gooseberry Falls. (Someone had told us it was "quite a hike" to the falls, and when we got to the falls without hiking more than 50 vertical feet, I was a bit confused.....until I remembered that these people are Minnesotans and have likely never seen let alone hiked an actual mountain!)

The falls were beautiful.

And Kenners couldn't help but go for another swim.

Me and Lila (who is starting to grow her own pair of fluffy cheeks...love!)

We ended the day by eating fried walleye at a local place (yum), endured 2.5 hours of screaming girls on the way home, and enjoyed the last 1/2 hour of the trip (when the girls finally conked out) engaged in pleasant, peaceful conversation. :)

And those girls just look like little angels snoozing in their car seats.

It was definitely an awesome little family vacation,

one I would highly recommend for anyone in the area.

Bittersweet

2011-07-11T06:47:00.000-08:00

For the past few days in a row,

someone has been pulling the fire alarm in our apartment building.....

......at 4am.

Someone has also been ruining other people's clothes in our building's laundromat, which makes me afraid that if I leave the room with my laundry in there I will only come back and discover that someone doused my clothes in Clorox.....

Not to mention the washing machines that already ruin and rip a great deal of our clothes.

And don't get me started on the vandal who went through our parking garage a few months ago and vandalized multiple cars (including mine).

Or our neighbors who cook the most awful-smelling food which permeates through the walls.

Or the fact that Kenadie's room constantly smells like mold no matter how many times we ask management to fix it.

Or how many times our heater and our AC units have broken.

Or the fact that we can't go swimming at our complex without being surrounded by a cloud of cigarette smoke because every adult at the pool is a serious chain smoker.

Or the rusty, old playground out back that is falling apart and makes me too nervous to let Kenadie play there.

Or our kitchen appliances that need constant repairs.

If we weren't already moving out of state in four short weeks,

I would definitely still be moving out of this place!

I'm a little tired of apartment living, but I'm particularly sick of living in this apartment.

And the fire alarm antics in the past few nights have only fueled my desire to get out of here.

But then again,

this is the only home Kenadie knows.

This is the home we brought Lila to after her birth.

This is where we started raising our family.

We have a lot of great memories from within these walls involving this old, ratty furniture we found in the dump that I "hate so much".

(I'll probably be a little sad returning most of this furniture to the dump when the time comes!)

We've learned a lot

and lived a lot

during our time here.

We've eaten a lot of beans and rice and homemade wheat bread all from our food storage.

We've watched Kenadie dance around the old carpet of our living room over and over again.

We have had multiple mornings of snuggles in our little bedroom.

I sang to and rocked Kenadie in her room every night before bedtime.

And though I look forward to a future of hopefully having more space, having my own washer and dryer, and not living in an apartment surrounded by questionable people,

I can't say that I have ever felt "poor"

or that I have been less happy because of where we live.

Though there are some annoyances and inconveniences of living in this building,

we have been happy.

Very, very happy.

So while I was trying not to curse the drunken (or just plain inconsiderate?) individual last night who has been enjoying pulling the fire alarm,

I kept reminding myself that I will probably cry next month when we leave this place,

because despite it all, it has been home.

And there is no place like home.

Hoppy Birthday!

2011-07-10T20:17:00.000-08:00

We decided to celebrate Kenadie's birthday a week late so that we could have a party with her Ellis cousins.

She had a froggie cake:

which she loved, and screamed all the way to her cousins' house because I wouldn't let her hold it in her lap. :)

It was my first venture into any sort of cake decorating, and as amateur-ish as this cake might look, it took a dang long time to make and decorate! I definitely need to take a class or two....

Kenners loved blowing out the candles and opening her presents.

(And Auntie Katie loved lovin' on little Lila. :)

Kenadie got an awesome vintage toy clock and a coloring pad from her Ellis cousins.

Garrett and I got her a baby doll and a stroller.

Best 20 dollar investment ever.

It has entertained her all day.

It also entertained Garrett and I as Kenadie every-so-often stops strolling and tells her baby, "Do it again, go time out!" She's even put her baby in time out several times today!

(Kenadie and time-out have been BFFs the last few days due to her sudden obsession with hitting Lila, or running over her with the stroller. Nice.)

Hoppity Birthday, Kenners!

And that officially ends the long string of "birthday posts" for her on this blog. :)

What's been going on at our humble abode......

2011-07-07T13:27:00.000-08:00

Kenners has been giving herself yogurt baths....

....and getting into a bag of tortillas and munching on them (after she's ripped her ponytails out again, of course).....

....yesterday she grabbed a whole tub of dry rolled oats and dumped it all over the apartment--including little piles on the couch cushions, bookshelf, little piles on the floor of every room, and even a little pile on Lila's tummy. Very sadly, there is no photographic proof for this colossal mess as the camera was in the car and the car was with Garrett.....but trust me, it was the mother of all messes!

I honestly try to keep our apartment above pig-sty status and try to keep my toddler somewhat clean, out of trouble, and well-groomed.

It doesn't seem to happen very often these days.

I guess I could try harder,

but I've been spending a lot of time cuddling this little angel:

and this little angel:

and I love to watch them cuddle each other:

....and I just figure that sometimes the dishes, laundry, vacuuming, sweeping, bathrooms, showering, etc can just wait.

I think these words say it best:

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peek-a-boo
The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullaby, rockaby lullaby loo.
The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow

For children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!

I’m rocking my babies and babies don’t keep.
- Ruth Hulbert Hamilton

How to make Kenners happy on her birthday weekend:

2011-07-07T12:26:00.002-08:00

(Pretend I posted this a few days ago. I'm a little tardy.....)

1. Take her swimming on Saturday morning.

2. Take her to the park

3. Find baby fwoggies at the park (which she was obviously tickled about!)

4. Go to TGI Friday's for dinner where the waiters all sing her "Happy Birthday" and give her ice cream topped with two candles that she can blow out. She LOVED it.

5. Take her to Nursery on Sunday where she can spend 2 hours playing with the baby dolls and strollers (luckily, that's exactly what she's getting for her birthday!)

6. Take her swimming again Monday morning.

7. Allow her to go on a Daddy-daughter outing while Daddy runs some errands.

8. Take her to her Ellis cousins' house where we welcome "Bwookie" home from Alaska and have a yummy great 4th of July barbecue.

9. Allow her to actually drink soda!

10. Take her to the park with her cousins while we wait for the fireworks to start.

Blowing bubbles with her cousins...

Sweet Lila caught a cat-nap before the fireworks, which I capitalized on....

11. Allow her to stuff her face with chocolate chip cookies.

12. Introduce her to the magical world of fireworks (which she thought was fabulous until a real big, really loud firework went off and then she spent the rest of the show with her eyes and ears half-covered).

Awesome fireworks...

Not so sure...

Hiding behind her hands and the blankey.....

13. Follow-up the fireworks show with firecrackers in the Ellis driveway (which Kenners enjoyed much more).

14. Follow-up this fabulous weekend with another one when we'll have an actual birthday party with Kenadies' cousins, complete with presents and a "fwoggie" cake.

15. Buy her a puppy.

Okay, so I definitely did NOT do #15, but we stuffed everything else into the weekend. We had a lot of fun celebrating the birth of our little girl, had a blast celebrating the birth of our great nation, and we especially loved getting to see our Ellis family again who we've missed so much!

.....and she's still hiding.... :)

All About the Birthday Girl

2011-07-02T06:08:00.001-08:00

Two years ago today was one of the greatest days of my life.

It was the day that I became a mother and the day that our sweet and sassy Kenadie Nicole joined the family:

I'm well aware that 75% of my blog posts revolve around Kenadie (when you live with such a personality, how could they not!?), but I thought that since I tend to have a much poorer memory the older I get, I should write down just what Kenadie was like at 2 years old.....

~ Some of you might think your 2 year old is a genius speaking in full sentences, singing the ABC'c, and counting to ten. Can Kenners do any of those? Heck no! But, can YOUR child speak Chinese?? Kenners can.....

~ Kenners also has an awesome way of speaking English. For example, "cocklee-uh" is chocolate. "Kee-uh" is kitty. "Pee-uh" is pretty. "Bock-ala" is broccoli, "uh-ho" is hello, and those are just a few.

~ She loves Bob Marley music. Borderline obsession.

~ Like any toddler, she is an expert mess-maker.

(Powdered sugar everywhere and half a bottle of perfume all over Kenadie)

~ She loves to sing: Disney songs, Pearl Jam, and her favorite singer as of late is her cousin, Alani.

~ She likes to try every type of vegetable on the dinner table.....she also likes to spit-out every single one after she's thoroughly chewed it.

~ She loves the sand and loves the water even more.

~ She loves to swim and with her life-vest will swim all over the big pool by herself.

~ She loves playing with kids that are older than her and tends to boss around kids that are younger/smaller than her.

~ Bwookie is her BFF.

~ She is still crazy about her Daddy (and he's pretty nuts for her, too) and loves to sing "Daddy's Homecoming".

~ She is a dawdler. This girl will not be rushed and likes to take her sweet time getting to where she's going while she sings, gabs to herself, and looks around.

~ Every time we leave the apartment, she fills her arms with toys and stuffed animals to bring with us.

~ She has an extremely loud voice (Oberg-style) but hates loud noises (like Lila's crying or the sound of the blender) and has learned to plug her ears with her fingers.

~ She still loves "fwoggies".

~ This is her favorite "face" to make.

She thinks she's hilarious and will use it to get a little attention, especially when she knows she's in danger of getting in trouble for smearing yogurt all over herself and the high chair.

~ And yep, she's still got those cheeks!

No college professor has taught me more,

no comedian has made me laugh harder,

no final exam, physical work-out, or day as an ICU nurse has challenged me more,

and no other little girl has given me more joy than my Kenners.

Being this little lady's mom has truly been one of the greatest adventures of my life.

She is quite a piece of work and just gets more fun every day.

Happy Birthday, Princess!

We love you so much.

Little Lila Love

2011-06-28T06:01:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, my friend Rhonda came over to take newborn pictures of Lila.

Our first experience having a professional photo shoot, and may I say how much fun that was!?

On Sunday, Rhonda gave me a CD of all the pictures, and they are incredible! (Anyone living in the Minneapolis area and needing a photographer, she is amazing.)

Rhonda giving me the CD couldn't have come at a more perfect time.

Poor Lila has been heading down the same path of crying/screaming that Kenners went through as an infant and the past week has left me a little ragged.

But seeing these pictures warms my heart and reminds me what a precious gift little Lila is in our family.

It's only been 3 weeks since her birth and already I can't imagine life without Lila and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for sending her to our family. She is a blessing.

And isn't she beautiful!?

And seeing Kenadie with her is a blessing as well.

Lila has decided to resist the Moby Wrap lately (sorrow!), so in order to get certain things done (in order to eat, bathe, cook, clean, go to the bathroom, tend to Kenners, etc), I have to simply set Lila down and let her scream. Kenners is quick to run to Lila's side, stroke her head, and repeat, "It okay. I heew, I heew (I'm here, I'm here.)" over and over again until I can come pick Lila up and bounce with her on the exercise ball (which is proving, once again, to be a lifesaver!) to somewhat calm her down. And if Kenners ever feels that I am taking too long to get around to picking up poor Lila, she'll run up to me and yell, "Cwying! Cwying! (Crying!)"

I just love what a sweet sister she is.

Love my little girls. :)

Visuals of a Superhero

2011-06-28T05:14:00.001-08:00

I had some friends in college who were really into making short films.

I got to play a villain in a spoof they did on the TV show "24".

And then we planned on making a short action/spy/thriller film

where I played the part of the super-tough-government-agent-heroine.

Unfortunately, we graduated, moved, and went our separate ways and the film was never completed....

....but not before we shot a minute's worth of me carrying a ginormous gun and shooting a grenade launcher.
I rediscovered this little clip the other day, laughed and laughed at my ridiculousness carrying a gun and trying to look tough, and thought I'd share (special effects--bullets hitting the car and grenade blowing-up a car--are missing, but you get the basic idea):

As I re-watched this, I thought, ''those were the days when being the superhero meant killing the bad guys and saving the world from destruction all while looking really cool.''

That was then.

This is now.

Today,

being a superhero means being able to cut both my ladies' nails without too much screaming.

It means being able to get everyone bathed, looking nice, and out the door to church on time.

It means singing to Kenners for a half hour before bedtime because she wants to hear Bob Marley songs and "Daddy's Homecoming" over and over and over again.

It means being able to maintain sanity while making dinner with Lila screaming in the background and Kenadie squirting lotion all over the carpet.
It means somehow managing to juggle the laundromat with the escape-artist toddler and wee baby in tow.

And it means being able to do these bare-minimum tasks on 3-4 hours of sleep a night.
It's kind of tough (for me at least) to get all these things done, and I often (maybe usually) fall short.

I definitely don't look as cool (or as well-groomed) as an undercover agent,

but I would say that when I do succeed I feel a lot more "super" than I did running around with that big ole gun and a scowl on my face.
And I imagine that the reward of having a happy, healthy, loved family is probably even more rewarding than blowing up a bad guy's getaway car anyway.

Here comes the bride....

2011-06-24T06:16:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow will be a happy but hard day for me.

My little sister, Hanna, is getting married

and I won't be there

to see her and Sandy kneel across the altar in the Alaska temple and be sealed to each other for time and all eternity.

Instead, I'm at home with my beautiful little family working on nursing all four of us back to health (yes, all four of us, darn it!). It's been a rough few days of illness around here and despite the fact that we are the only family not at Hanna's wedding,

I can't help but feel completely happy that she has found her eternal sweetheart in a man who I know will love and take good care of her.

I love you, little sister, and I can't wait to hear every detail and see every picture of your special day!

Enjoy it!

I rustled up this video from when Sandy surprised Hanna by flying up to Alaska over Christmas break to see her. I think we all had a hunch at this point that wedding bells were in their future.... :)

End of and Era

2011-06-24T05:45:00.000-08:00

For the past four years, this has been the familiar scene in our home:

studying, studying, and more studying!

And Kenadie has obviously become well-accustomed to this studying stuff.

Especially when the board exams are coming up.

Happily,

we no longer have to worry about spending our evenings studying,

because today we found out that Garrett has PASSED his 4th and final round of boards!

Cue the hallelujah chorus, please.

My new best friend

2011-06-23T11:16:00.000-08:00

In the past year or so, I have noticed a lot of mothers carrying around their babies in something called a "Moby Wrap". They all swear by their Moby Wrap: it is comfortable, offers great back support, and allows them to tote around baby while carrying on all of the days chores and activities.

I figured out fast that having one of these would save my life and sanity.

Kenadie demands a lot of attention, Lila loves to be held (and has mastered the art of screaming like a gut-shot panther when her cries are not being answered with snuggles), and the chores, laundry, dishes, and meals don't get done by themselves!

So I ordered one and am LOVING it.

My apartment is still a mess 75% of the time, the laundry seems to be never-ending, and I still have not cooked a gourmet meal in the past few weeks, but this wrap is helping me to keep some order and peace in our household.

It's come in handy on walks and I get the feeling that it will be a lifesaver when we go to the Alaska State Fair this fall.

Someone somewhere has made their millions taking five yards of fabric and marketing it as "The Moby Wrap". I'm just sad it wasn't me!

Father's Day

2011-06-19T06:39:00.001-08:00

He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it. ~Clarence Budington Kelland

I have a tradition of rocking Kenners and singing Primary songs to/with her before putting her down for nap time and bedtime.

I've been doing it since she was 6 months old and it is one of my favorite times of the day.

In the last weeks of my pregnancy with Lila, my belly was getting too big to hold Kenadie in my lap and my back was killing me, so Garrett began to take over the privilege of singing to Kenners before bedtime.

I loved hearing him sing to her every night :)

Now that I am no longer pregnant, I have reclaimed my place as the official putter-to-bed-parent.

However,

Kenners no longer wants me to sing her Primary Songs.

Instead,

she keeps requesting Bob Marley and Pearl Jam songs,

most of which I do not know the lyrics to.

Apparently Garrett has not been singing Primary songs to Kenadie before bedtime

and this is making my job of singing to Kenadie quite difficult, because she gets seriously upset when I tell her that I don't know the song she wants me to sing to her.

My husband has turned our daughter into a fan of Pearl Jam and Reggae music.

And I think it's rather cute.

Unconventional, but cute.

And it reminds me of what a good daddy Garrett is to our little girls.

He plays with Kenadie as long as she wants him to,

he sings to her,

he rocks baby Lila and loves on her,

he takes Kenadie on daddy-daughter outings quite frequently (last night it was to Home Depot and Best Buy to get some tools and stuff for our car--I swear he's gonna turn her into a tom boy!).

He handles the current organized chaos of our household with calm and love and doesn't get frazzled (like I do) when both girls are literally screaming for attention.

He reads the scriptures to our daughters after dinner and leads us in family prayer each night.

So many reasons why he is a good father.

But mostly, he is a good father because of the way he lives his life: willing to serve and help others, putting his family and his faith first, working hard, and living a life of gratitude and joy.

This is similar to how my own father has lived his life and what has made him such a good daddy to his seven children. I feel so blessed to have had a wonderful father and to now see my husband being such a great father to his little girls.

A good father makes all the difference in the world

and I'm glad to celebrate this day in honor of those fathers.

Thank you all, and I love you.

Sweet Little Lila

2011-06-16T12:40:00.000-08:00

Dear precious girl,

I've waited 9 long months to meet you. I puked a lot the first half and spent a few afternoons in the hospital when I jut couldn't stop throwing up or remain conscious. I enjoyed seeing you on the ultrasound kicking your little frog legs against my stomach and loved feeling you wiggle around inside of me. I wondered what you would look like. Would all my kids have a similar "look" that identified them as "Christensen children"? Would you have massive amounts of dark hair like your sister or your daddy's little ears, or would you have a look all your own? I endured the heartburn, charlie horses, back aches, and nausea. I survived the exquisite pain of childbirth so that I could meet you.
And now you're here.
And you are beautiful.
You do look a lot like your sister, Kenadie. Similar eyes, long fingers and toes, very tall, dark hair. But you do have your own little dainty look, too, complete with perfectly poofy lips.
Now that I know what you look like, I wonder what your little personality will be like. Do you hold the same sassy factor that your sister has? Will you love to dance and sing the way she does? I can already sense a unique calming spirit about you, though you can cry like the dickens when you have had enough neglect (while I take care of big sister) and just want to be held! And when I pick you up, you calm right down and become instantly happy. :) I so look forward to getting to know the little person you are and will become as you grow.
For now, I am completely in love and enjoying every snuggle moment, every night feeding, and every moment you are alert and bright-eyed (which is quite frequent so far!). You are perfect and we are so happy to finally have you here with us in our family.
Love,
Mommy

We love you, Grandma

2011-06-15T08:27:00.001-08:00

Grandma Christensen made the long flight across the country to be here for Lila's birth.

She was wonderful: doing the grocery shopping, the laundry, the cooking, all while having a nasty case of laryngitis!

She sacrificed her i-phone for the nearly 2 weeks we were here so that Kenners could play on her apps 24/7 (yikes!).

She rubbed my feet during labor.

Right after giving birth to Lila, she gave me the most beautiful necklace with Lila's birthstone on it.

She made sure that Lila had plenty of cute onesies and jammies when she came into the world.

She took Kenners to the park.

She made me the world's yummiest chocolate cake for my early birthday celebration.

She got me the cutest purse from Lillian's Shoppe (one of my favorite stores) for my birthday.

She gave lots of grandma-love to Kenadie and Lila.

Since she left a few days ago, Kenners has woken up every day and after every nap asking for "gamma!" She cried a little this morning when I reminded her that Grandma had gone home.

Mom, you are an angel and words can't express our love for you and our appreciation for all you did despite being so sick while you were here. We hope you recover quickly and can now enjoy time with Nicole and Alani while they're in San Diego visiting. :)

Me miss you!

This is my life

2011-06-14T09:28:00.000-08:00

This was my life 5 years ago:

On a study abroad for nursing school in Argentina, working in a maternity hospital, enjoying the last of my college years .

This was my life 4 years ago:

engaged to the most handsome and incredible man, working as a nurse in the ICU in Utah, getting ready for my new life as "Holly Christensen".

This was my life 3 years ago:

married to my sweetheart, living in Texas, working as an Oncology nurse, enjoying the newlywed phase of life before the arrival of children.

This was my life 2 years ago:

Living in Minnesota while Garrett was finishing his first year of chiropractic school, days away from welcoming Kenadie into our family.

This was my life one year ago:

wife to a busy chiropractic student, mom to the spunkiest, greatest little girl, nurse to Alzheimer's patients, absolutely loving life.

And this is my life today:

my arms are full with my fun, little toddler and my sweet, new baby. I am running on very little sleep and my hair has not seen a blow-dryer or curling iron in awhile.

My wonderful husband is busy and gone all day while he finishes up chiropractic school before we move our family to Alaska in 8 short weeks.

My life seems a little full and hectic right now. I wish I had an extra pair of arms and that sleep was not necessary to function properly.

But

I haven't been happier in the five previous, awesome years than I am now.

Oh, how I love my family and my life. :)

Never were there such devoted sisters

2011-06-11T16:05:00.000-08:00

Kenners adores her sister.

Which translates into Mommy having to watch her like a hawk.

Kenadie likes to hold "Baby Ly-lee" but would like to do it by herself, standing up, thank-you-very-much!

She also likes to give"Ly-lee" her binkie, but she's still learning that we don't forcefully shove the binkie in her mouth.....Kenners is also learning that we don't steal baby sister's binkie. Binkies are for babies and Kenners is no longer a baby. I have a hunch that this lesson will probably take awhile to sink in..... :) but fortunately Lila doesn't seem to be too interested in a binkie at this point anyway.

I can tell that this adjustment is already a little hard for Kenadie who isn't used to sharing the attention, but I'm just so grateful that she loves her sister so much already, is eager to help, and is always concerned and lets Mommy know whenever Lila is crying.

I really am so proud of and love my little Kenadie even more than ever.

It is a blessing to see these little sisters side by side.

I look forward to the days when they will be best buddies and playmates. :)

Lila's Birthday

2011-06-10T19:07:00.001-08:00

Between late-night feedings and making sure that Kenners isn't trying to tote her little sister around the apartment or shove Veggie-straws in her mouth, I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that little Lila is actually here, that she came so fast, and that I actually survived it.

As I had mentioned before, I have been preparing for this birth by taking hypnobirthing classes from my awesome friend, Calista, and practicing a lot of deep relaxation.
Mostly, I just wanted to have a more peaceful and satisfying birth experience than I had had with Kenadie, regardless of whether or not I ended up having an epidural.
And I was blessed with just that. :)

I woke up Sunday at 1am with strong contractions about 10 minutes apart that I couldn't sleep through.
I thought, "this is it!", but decided to let everyone sleep until the contractions got too close together and intense for me to relax through by myself.
But they never got stronger. Or closer together. Just remained the same.
But luckily I was able to stay relaxed all night thanks to the classes and weeks of practice. At about 6 am the contractions started to die down until they just became sporadic throughout the day.
Garrett went to clinic and my mother-in-law, Claire, and I spent the day with Kenners and ran around doing a few errands. By late afternoon, the contractions began to pick up again.
Garrett got home at 6 pm in time for dinner, but I was suddenly too nauseous to eat and the contractions had picked up to 5 minutes apart. I was thinking, "okay, this has got to be it!" so I took a shower and made sure we were all ready for the hospital and that Kenners was ready to go to the babysitter's.

By 7:45pm the contractions were 3 minutes apart and we were on our way to the hospital, getting settled in a little after 8:15.
We were so blessed to have the most fabulous nurse who was excited and supportive when we told her that we had planned a hypnobirth. She helped keep the room calm and quiet and was very encouraging. My friend, Calista showed up soon after we got settled and Claire and my sister, Katie, were awesome to be there as well for moral support. :)
It wasn't long before I got into the tub and had soft music playing and essential oils filling the air. Garrett and Calista helped me relax and I felt completely calm and in control in the water. It was great.
I decided to shift positions in the tub at about 9:30pm and suddenly felt a "pop!"
"I think my water just broke," I announced to Garrett, followed immediately by a contraction that I really struggled relaxing through. I decided that the tub was no longer comfortable and made my way back to the bed.

That's when the contractions suddenly became extremely intense and seemed to be coming one on top of another (Garrett later told me that they were about 30 seconds apart).
Garrett was amazing at encouraging me through the contractions, applying counter pressure to my back (oh, the back labor!), and keeping me calm. However, it didn't take too many of these stacked contractions until I found myself saying the one thing so many women say during the latter stages of labor: "I can't do it anymore!"
Garrett and Calista both told me that my saying that meant that it was almost over! Hooray! But after getting checked by the nurse, I had only progressed to about 5-6 cm dilated.
I was crushed.
"5 cm is NOT near to being over!" I thought to myself, and that's where the peaceful, calm labor ended (at least in my mind). I was certain that I had a few hours left and was disappointed that I felt there was no way I could endure it for that long.
I kept repeating that I couldn't do it anymore, Calista and Garrett kept saying I was almost done and could do it, and I kept thinking that they were mean for not just letting me get an epidural.
After 20 more minutes of contractions, the nurse checked me again and announced that I was dilated to 8cm.
"See!? You're almost there!" Garrett encouraged me. "The hardest part is over!"
However, I was still convinced that I had awhile left in labor.
Just as I was about to plead (again) for an epidural, I suddenly had to push!
"I have to push! I have to push!" I kept repeating (or hollering) half-panicked and confused. The doctor hadn't even made it to the hospital yet, I wasn't even fully dilated, and my body was beginning to involuntarily push.
I was kneeling on the bed and could hear hospital staff behind me getting set up to deliver the baby. My nurse told me to turn around in the bed and lay down.
"I can't!" Was all I could say while my body pushed.
"Okay, Dad, she's coming now! Get ready to catch your baby!" The nurse told Garrett. Garrett said that he barely had time to get his gloves on before catching the baby as she rocketed out within a few pushes (and accompanied by a few "Jane-of-the-jungle" screams from my part). It felt like my body had been ripped in half, but the relief of having her out was absolutely incredible!
It was 10:11pm.
I couldn't believe that in 40 minutes I had gone from being 5 cm dilated to holding my baby in my arms.
And as silly as it sounds, I couldn't believe that I had actually survived it!
The pain was so much more intense than I had prepared for, but I was completely in awe at the miracle of birth and how quickly my body was able to progress and get her out.
I was amazed that I had actually done it!
And Lila was absolutely beautiful.
She came out so fast that she didn't even have a hint of a cone-head. She had a perfectly-round little head of dark hair and only cried for a few seconds before settling right down and breastfeeding like a champ.

By the time the doctor had arrived, Garrett had caught our baby, had waited before the umbilical cord stopped pulsing before clamping and cutting it, and I had already been cleaned up and was feeding my baby. All that was left for the doctor to do was stitch me up (ouch!).
We were so blessed to have not had any complications that required the immediate presence of the doctor, and it really neat that there was just about zero medical intervention involved in those short two hours we were at the hospital before Lila came. The nurse had even forgotten to give me an IV!
The hospital staff was awesome for the rest of our stay and our pediatrician was great to let us go home the following evening.
It really was a close-to-perfect experience.
I may have envisioned being able to maintain better calm and composure through transition, but I can't help but think that being able to use the deep relaxation of hypnobirthing up until that point that made the last 40 minutes progress so quickly.
I mean, who can complain having to endure less than an hour of the "I-think-I'm-gonna-die" pain of labor!?
My nurse later told me that it was a good thing I had prepared for an un-medicated birth as the anesthesiologist probably would not have been able to give me an epidural in time for Lila's birth.
So I am glad that I went the hypnobirthing route and I would definitely recommend looking into it for anyone wanting an un-medicated birthing experience.
It may not have given me the "pain-free" birth that some hypnobirthing moms claim to have (um, not even close!), but it definitely helped me to endure the labor much better than I think I ever could have on my own.
It was definitely all worth it and we are so in love with little Lila.

Garrett coaching me through a contraction:

Daddy catching his daughter:

My awesome friend and hypnobirthing coach, Calista:

Auntie Katie was there for support and love.

Grandma Christensen lovin' on her newest granddaughter:

I couldn't have made it through without my amazing husband:

Our little angel, Lila Claire (named after both her grandmas)

Lila Claire

2011-06-07T18:56:00.000-08:00

After a whirlwind labor and plenty of repeated "I really can't do this anymore" pleas from Mom,
little miss Lila Claire made her grand entrance

on June 6th at 10:11pm.

7 pounds, 10 ounces.

21 inches.

Looks like her big sister.

Absolutely perfect.

BFFs

2011-06-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

This is "Kennews" and "Bwookie" (as they are known to each other):

(and this is a hijacked picture from my sister's blog. :) Thanks, Katie!)

They are BFF cousins.

Whenever we get in the car, Kenadie constantly repeats, "Bwookie? Bwookie!!!"

And when she realizes that we aren't going to Bwookie's house but to church, or the store, or daycare,

she gets quite upset.

It is precious how much Kenadie loves her cousin.....even if she does have a bit of a bully streak in her and rarely likes to share toys (working on that one).

Aside from being BFFs--sometimes "frenemies"--Kennews and Bwookie are also partners in crime.

In the past week they have made 2-3 attempts at running away from home. They were successful once, disappearing for 5-10 minutes while we frantically searched the neighborhood for them. We found them a good 100 yards away from my sister's house in a ditch between two soccer fields: Brookie had shed her pants somewhere; both hadn't a care in the world; it was awesome.

Then on Monday I discovered who might be the culprit of these little escapades when I spotted Kenadie racing across the same soccer fields with Brookie and a few other toddlers starting to curiously follow behind.....

Wish list for future home: a fenced-in yard.

Needless to say, besides the mischief that two little toddlers can muddle up together, it is so fun getting Kennews and Bwookie together and watching them run around, squeal, and play.

I don't even want to think about the tragedy that awaits them both when we move away and they are separated.....

Hey Katie, wanna move your family to Alaska with us!? :)

Eviction Notice

2011-05-31T06:04:00.001-08:00

*I hijacked this clever little letter from my sis-in-law's blog, because I believe that most mothers-to-be feel somewhat like disgruntled landlords by the end of pregnancy..... :)

Dear Little Ms. Christensen:

I hereby issue a 10 day notice for EVICTION. You will have 10 days in which you can either gather your belongings and promptly vacate the premises, or wait until the final day, after which, you will be physically removed from the property.

You are being evicted due to breech of contract and destruction of property. Expansions only to the FRONT of the house, within reasonable limits, were discussed. Not only have these limits been exceeded, but additions to the back of the house were also made!

Remodeling and gutting of the home was never approved, nor was changing the initial layout and base structure. And due to property damage, there are now leaks in both the upper AND lower levels of the home. On top of which, the landlord has received numerous complaints about nightly disturbances.

After 10 days from this day that you don't comply with the notice will result in immediate and forceful removal at my discretion.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Love,
Mommy

While I wait for labor to start....

2011-05-29T16:36:00.000-08:00

I've been enjoying lots of quality time with this little ham:

We go to the park.

We cook and bake together.
We color together. Kenadie always wants me to draw a "fwoggie", even though my "fwoggie" drawing skills could use some serious guidance.

We vacuum and feed my obsession of scrubbing down the tub and shower more than necessary.

We enjoy long walks and performing thorough "tick checks" after coming back inside. (I found a tick in Kenadie's diaper the other day, giving me one more reason to look forward to Alaska.)

We sit through "Tangled" for the bajillionth time while Kenadie brushes my hair over and over.

And before I go to bed at night, I can't resist sneaking a peek at my baby:

because soon she will no longer be THE baby anymore.

So I'm soaking in all the Kenners-time I can get.

Looks can be deceiving

2011-05-23T06:21:00.000-08:00

Here I am with under 3 weeks left to go in this pregnancy:

I was told multiple times yesterday at church that I look "great" and way too tiny to be full-term.

I was also told that it must be nice (as in a lot less uncomfortable) being so small.

Well, thank you!

It is nice to not be super huge.

I'm sure it's making for less stretch marks.

However,

may I suggest that looks can be deceiving......

I had my 37 week check-up a few days ago.

Baby is head down, sitting very low, and my body is ready to push this baby out whenever she decides she's ready. Great!

During the appointment, the doctor also helped to validate some of the discomforts I've recently had:

this is not a tiny baby.

In his words, "Well, you hide your babies really well because this girl is going to be solid."

He guessed that she's well over 7lbs at this point.

Ah, so that's why I feel like I have no room left despite my seemingly-petite exterior and why her head feels like a giant bowling ball crushing me "down there" (especially since she's dropped). I've got myself a good-sized baby!

So with that bit of information: little baby, you may come out as soon as you wish! I'm not expecting it for another 3 weeks, but I'd rather push you out before you get too much bigger.....

On the other hand, on a morning like today when your big sister has woken up on the wrong side of the bed and is keeping my hands more than full, I think I can handle your antics inside my abdomen a little longer..... :)

But rest-assured, little baby, you have one awesome and fun big sister who can't wait to meet you whenever you do decide to join us.

You two are going to have so much fun together.

Happiness on a Sunday afternoon....

2011-05-22T18:03:00.000-08:00

......consists of licking the batter from the spatula and mixer paddle.

Hypno-wha?

2011-05-21T12:51:00.001-08:00

One year at the Alaska State Fair, there was a hypnosis show that my siblings, cousins, and 4-H friends would go watch whenever we weren't working in the barn with our animals.

It was entertaining.
Especially when I watched my brother get hypnotized and then firmly believe that he was being attacked by a dog every time the hypnotist scratched his nose.

Joey, you were great. :)

Despite its entertainment value, I've always thought hypnosis was a bunch of phooey. I mean, really?? Joey, did you really think that you were being attacked by a rabid dog!?

Being the skeptic, I figured that hypnosis would never work on me because, well, I've never been completely convinced that it's legit in the first place. But it sure was hilarious and a great escape from barn duty....

Fast forward to nursing school.

Labor and Delivery class to be exact.

My professor was strict, kind of scary, completely awesome, and a firm believer in something called "Hypnobirthing".

I think I giggled a little when she first mentioned it, because the visual of stage hypnosis combined with childbirth is just comical.

Remember, I had always planned on having unmedicated births with my own children and I believe in the woman's ability to birth "naturally" without any medical intervention (for the majority of cases), but the Hypnobirthing claim that childbirth doesn't have to be painful!? Um, do we all remember how small of an opening that ginormous head and body has to squeeze its way through? Can anyone tell me how that physiologically isn't supposed to hurt!?

Anyway, I was introduced to the idea during class one day.

I saw videos of women giving birth without making a peep or looking like they were at all uncomfortable.

My professor explained the physiology behind how this is possible when you are completely relaxed, let go of fear, and let your body "do its thing".

Mostly, I just chalked it up to that the fact that these women who could birth that way were just like my mom: freakishly tough and really good at tolerating and/or hiding pain.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago.

I'd been wanting to get a doula to help me through this next labor.

But doulas can be pricey and any "doula budget" that might have existed went directly into the "fixing my vandalized car" budget.

And then I met my friend Calista who just moved into the area.

Somehow we got on the topic of childbirth and I mentioned how I had wanted a doula but that it might not work out this time around.....and then she said, "Well, I'm not a doula, but I'm working towards it and I'm a certified hypnobirthing instructor."

My interest was peaked, she sweetly offered me a big discount on her classes, and volunteered to be there at my birth (free of charge) to help coach me and Garrett. Sweet!

I was mostly excited to have someone there at my birth to help me "get through it", but I figured the classes would be interesting too (even if I was still a little weirded-out by the idea of hypnobirthing).

I did tell her right away that I have always been a little skeptical about hypnosis in general and wasn't sure that I really believed childbirth could be (or should be) painless.

She immediately responded by telling me that most hypnobirthing mothers' experiences aren't "pain-free", but that their perception and definition of pain completely change during hypnobirthing, making it a calmer, more controlled experience.

She also reassured me that hypnobirthing is far different from the "stage hypnosis" that I loved to watch and laugh at during the Alaska State Fair shows. The hypnosis in hypnobirthing is more about being deeply relaxed, focused, and in control during labor.

Okay, a little less skeptical.....

.....and fast forward to today.

I'm having my last hypnobirthing class tonight, and I have to admit I'm coming around to be a believer in this stuff.

Calista is awesome.

She's helping me learn how to relax in general, which is a life skill that I definitely need some work on.

As my Braxton-Hicks contractions have begun to get painful and keep me up at night, I've learned to breathe and relax through them, making them much less annoying and very tolerable.

I'm not quite nervous or scared for labor like I was a few weeks ago.

I feel like a stronger, more confident person in several aspects of my life.

I have really learned so much in the past few weeks, and not just about how to relax during childbirth.

All in all, it's been a great experience,

and now I'm interested to see what my labor will be like after all this.....

.....but I'm pretty sure that I will still leave the "stage hypnosis" stuff to my brother Joey :)

How to end a week perfectly:

2011-05-15T17:12:00.000-08:00

1. Sell your car with little hassle.

2. Go on a date with your honey (first date just he and I have been on in.....months??.....and probably the last one for a little while...)

3. Eat the most amazing sushi for dinner, even though you technically aren't supposed to during pregnancy (hey, I'm still alive!)

4. Find out that at 36 weeks, you're already 50% effaced, dilated to a 1 cm, and baby is sitting nice and low. How can that not make a pregnant lady happy!? :)

5. Have your husband come home on Sunday evening FINISHED with his very last round of chiropractic board exams! Garrett does have two "fluff classes" and his clinic/internships left, but all the major work and stress of school is OVER!! Such an awesome feeling for him and for his wife. :) Bring on an awesome summer with plenty of time together as a family.....

6. Sit down in the living room Sunday night (with a munchkin-angel sound asleep in the other room) and indulge in Garrett's chocolate chip cookies.

Yep, just 6 simple steps guarantee an awesome end to the week. You should try it sometime.